Inspiration for the New Year

Self-Advocate Inspiration and Reflections on GiGi’s Annual Conference

This is a blog by Maya Greengus, GiGi’s Playhouse Madison’s first board member with Down syndrome. Check back often to hear more from Maya, as she plans on sharing throughout the year – here and via our social media channels. 

I had the privilege to be part of a life changing experience – learning about what it means to serve as a leader in the Down syndrome community, at the GiGi’s Playhouse Madison National Conference. 

Self-advocates with Nancy Gianni, the founder of GiGi’s Playhouse. Maya is pictured on the right.

A quote from Edward Norton that I learned and felt was profound, from the conference was: “The flutter of a butterfly’s wings in one part of the world can eventually cause a hurricane in another.” I love how this quote explains the impact one small change can make.

Some of you might wonder what the GiGi’s Playhouse Annual Leadership Conference is. GiGi’s tagline is: Educate, Inspire, Believe. This event brings leaders from Playhouses across the country together to collectively learn from one another about how to serve the Down syndrome community. The conference had many breakout sessions, but the ones I specifically attended were: 

  • GiGi’s Go Forward Business Strategy
  • State of our Programs
  • Social Media & Marketing Communication
  • Event Strategy
  • Venues and Themes to Align with your Goals
Self-advocates providing an introduction for one of the breakout sessions. Maya is pictures on the left.

Some of the most important things I learned as a self advocate/ambassador for the Madison Playhouse at the conference, is that it is okay to step out of your own comfort zone. The conference provided the space for individuals to learn about everything from social media and how to feel comfortable with public speaking to CPR. 

Keynote Speaker Dan Thurmon, author of Positive Chaos said: “ If you limit yourself to what’s comfortable  You deny yourself what’s possible.” We are each created in our own way. I thought it was especially cool how he talked about chaos, and how it can be positive and negative: 

Challenging | Chaotic
Healing | Hectic
Aspiring | Anxious
Ongoing | Overwhelming
Synergy | Stress

This resonated with me personally. It showed me it’s okay to be a human who has imperfections because we all have our own scars and flaws. In my life, being born with Down syndrome I have experienced CHAOS. Over the years, I have matured and learned from the effects of my own impulsivity. As I have grown up, I can appreciate the guidance and reassurance I received to help me be more socially aware. 

You can’t let bullies and negativity influence you to be that way toward other people in life. You should treat others the way you want to be treated. It’s what we call the golden rule. Part of the Generation G pledge is to be accepting, be generous and be kind. It’s important to be positive toward everyone, including those who through hard times may have had negative perceptions of you. This should not define you. We are all capable. It is enough, just to be yourself. 

The way you express yourself to the world, you should do for yourself, not others. If you want to act, sing, paint a picture, be funny, write poetry, be a public speaker for an audience, it is you on that stage giving it your all. No matter how an audience reacts, you can feel proud of you. 

This connects to leadership because if you want people to follow and believe that you can make an impact on the world, you have to be the change the world needs to see. 

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