What’s In Your Backpack?
June 18th, 2026 by Diane Conklin under Business - General, Business Strategy. No Comments.
Last week in one of my videos, I talked about a story I saw about Sara Blakely, the founder of SPANX and I got so many comments that I thought I’d share it here too. She was giving a commencement speech at Florida State University and walked onto the stage carrying a bright red backpack.
Not a designer handbag.
Not a luxury briefcase.
A red backpack.
That backpack was the one she carried when she started SPANX. She took it to every meeting for the first seven years of her business. While people around her suggested she upgrade to something more sophisticated or more “successful looking,” she never did.
Because the backpack felt authentic to her. It was filled with product samples and everything she needed as she built her company.
Today, that same backpack sits behind glass at Spanx headquarters as a reminder of where it all began.
The backpack is a reminder that everything you need is already on your back. Your job is to unpack it.
I say a version of that all the time.
You already have what you need.
The skills, experiences and lessons.
It’s already there.
Now, does that mean you never need help? Of course not.
Sometimes you need a coach to help pull it out of you.
Sometimes you need a mentor to challenge you.
Sometimes you need someone to ask the right questions or help you see what you’ve been missing.
But the answers aren’t living somewhere outside of you.
They’re already inside you.
How many of us are simply carrying our backpacks around every day?
We drag them from meeting to meeting.
We take them to breakfast, to work and we even sleep with them.
All the while, we’re stuffing more and more into them.
More ideas.
More experiences.
But something interesting happens when you start unpacking that backpack.
When you start sharing your gifts.
When you start sharing your knowledge.
When you start putting your products, programs, services, and ideas into the world.
The load gets lighter, you stand a little taller and move a little faster.
You gain confidence because you’re finally using what you’ve been carrying around all this time.
Most people spend their lives looking outside themselves for the answer.
They look to the next guru.
The next book.
The next course.
And while all of those things can be valuable, they aren’t where your success lives.
Your success starts with what you’ve already packed.
The question is whether you’re willing to unpack it.
So, here’s my challenge to you…
Are you carrying your backpack around?
Or are you unpacking it?
What gifts, talents, experiences, or ideas have you been holding onto that the world needs from you right now?
Because everything you need is already there.
It’s been there all along.
Now it’s time to unpack it.
And if you need someone to help you unpack what’s inside, reach out. Let’s have a conversation and see if we’re a fit.
To Your Success –
