The second part on noble goals.
The Noble Goal
Some thoughts on purpose and the noble goal.
Succeeding in What Matters
“Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.” – Francis Chan
The above quote came from a friend of mine. It is sobering and provoking.
Here’s what I did with it:
- I looked back and reflected on my pursuits
- I made a list of my successes and lined them up in two different categories (what matters and what doesn’t). I have changed a lot
- I was impacted by the second chances given
- When I considered the quote, I could make sense of my journey over a good ten years of living
- Life is a story, I’m leaning into it. Happy or sad, I’m leaning in
You should make discovering what maters your greatest priority. Please know too, many will not encourage you to succeed in what matters. It’s a crazy irony that often we’re encouraged to pursue what ends in the meaningless.
Legacy: Your Life, Your Work, Your Story
Gave a talk this week around the urgency of wellbeing and how legacy is impacted by our choices. Came away inspired to share this updated post from 2007, Legacy: Your Life, Your Work, Your Story.
There probably is no greater consequence to consider than what type of legacy we leave behind. The finality of our legacy can make you pause and contemplate the things you’ve said and done. There’s something in us that makes us realize that we are leaving a mark on this great planet-good or bad. And it is true that we all (rich and poor, young and old, learned and ignorant) have a legacy to account for. It’s ironic that many don’t even give it a second thought. Consider the words of Vaclav Havel:
“The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less.”
If all there is to your work life is this quarter’s numbers or the year-end bonus, then legacy probably means little to you. If there is no cause or great battle to fight, then you probably think all this talk about legacy is “soft.” Because to think of legacy is to have vision, and we know vision is about seeing the unseen. But what’s really powerful is the fact that it is seen…it’s unfolding everyday before your very eyes. It’s a truth that everyone is shaping their legacy one day at a time.
Corporate slave traders need people who are willing, if not ignorantly, to exchange their freedom for the immediate issue at hand. See Wall Street to learn more. They need you to be fixated on concerns that can be solved in meetings and handled by committees. They want your mind on the work…for as long as they can use you. They want you intoxicated by that corner office and all that it means, even if it means nothing at all. If you’re not thinking about legacy, then you are just a means to an end. Even if you’re covered in the finest of the fine.
Here are some things to consider when making the turn to legacy:
- Don’t expect the crowd to applaud. Rarely does this happen, and the truth is you don’t need it. You need to make your story the best it can be, not the most popular.
- Living a life of legacy requires you to think about eternity. Take a look at the opening scene below from the movie Gladiator:
- If you value freedom, remember your story is the most important one.
- Search for someone (spouse, brother, sister, mentor, priest, colleague) who wants this life for you and let them spur you on.
- Read Success Built To Last and be inspired by others who share your desire.
The Giving Up Thing
Wrote this back in 2011. I was in the garden this past week and it dawned on me how I’ve been to this place and back, and back again. Hope you get some inspiration here. Cheers!
Picture this, you’re moving through life wondering where you fit in. You’ve played many roles. You’ve tried finding happiness in what everyone says you should be happy with. But, alas, you’re still looking. Every day you’re looking and the “giving up thing” rears its head (ugly or beautiful).
This is tough and lonely work.
If we’re honest, we’d admit that the purpose/mission has at one time or another whispered to us. Trouble is we’re not a very honest culture. The art of lying to oneself is very much the norm. And so it goes, the whisper. The proverbial, “this is what makes me come alive” or “I belong in this space.” Do you listen or try to ignore? So now you know. It’s calling you and maybe you’re one of the few that listens. Your first step out into the great unknown is a dip (thank you Seth Godin). Maybe it’s skepticism, maybe it’s envy or maybe it’s flat out fear on your part. Before long you begin to wonder what you’ve done and is it too late to turn back. Turning back always has your number on speed-dial.
There is a reason Cortez burned the ships in the harbour.
Let me be clear, sometimes you should give up. I think we know when that is. The time to give up is not when you’re being refined by the crucible of exhaustion and doubt. And believe me, that’s when many do give up. I’ve always believed that no one can truly play a part in changing the world until they have felt pain and loss. By the way, that’s what everyone else has experienced. And is experiencing in some way. The audience is looking for someone who is unwavering in integrity and has a passion to solve the problems.
Here are some observations on combating the desire to give up when you shouldn’t:
- As mentioned earlier, your exhaustion and doubt may be related to the crucible.
- Being who you really are is Tough Work. Don’t buy the lie of ease and comfort.
- Going back is often the first step to your own eulogy.
- Don’t confuse the need for reinvention of your work versus turning the lights out. Your work is your work, know what it is.
- Be allegiant to your life. This brings clarity, you’ll need this when the difficult times come.
Finding Real Value at Thanksgiving
How Meaningful Work Can Create Havoc
Some would say that meaningful work stands in direct opposition to the structure of many organizations-specifically large organizations. I would say it can create havoc. And that might be a good thing.
I know you might be thinking havoc brings destruction and loss. Correct. But the main point is found in how humans are wired versus the often insane motivations of the organization or business model. It seems to me we're seeing the unraveling that is inevitable when the goals of the company run counter to basic human wiring.
We're talking the desire for meaning and meaningful work. Not dreaming with no action, but the core of who we are.
I've talked to many a pragmatists who've told me to be realistic and not get lost in all of the soft stuff. Most of the time these folks are just not willing to see what is very difficult to face. In other words, the train wreck we're grappling with in so many parts of the world. The damage is so evident and many are not quite sure what to do.
I saw this coming over ten years ago, some of you even further back. Now we have a hunger to get life right. In many ways, we want a place where well-being is balanced and intact. Though we're struggling with the aftermath of years of neglect-individually and corporately. It's as if we got drunk on profit, competition and the desire to succeed. And in-turn, we wounded (sometimes mortally) the very group that makes all of the right form of the latter possible.
People.
Why Going Back Doesn’t Work
I recently posted on our Facebook Fan Page the following question:
Why didn't Neo go back into the Matrix?
If you've seen the Matrix, you probably have the answer. But what's fascinating is how readily we can be to going back to something that doesn't exist anymore. I guess you could say Neo was super-human and therefore had the stamina to keep going forward. I think it's more that his eyes were opened and he was caught by the fire of his purpose.
One of the first steps of any journey is to define the purpose (the reason you're here). Without purpose you're nothing more than a wonderer. I didn't fully define my purpose until I crossed my personal Rubicon. I was well under way by that time. Regardless, it was key in helping me understand the dangers of trying to go back.
We are in a battle, you and I. The present and the future are unfolding. There are problems to solve and the resistance is great.
Here are 7 reasons why going back won't work:
- When you think about going back, it's usually accompnained by a false-sense that what's behind you was secure. Revisionism gives us the luxury of telling ourselves lies. We live in a world that is insecure. This presents great opportunity too.
- Our lifetime is made up of multiple lifetimes. This means there will be beginnings and endings. Even the best situations were never made to go on and on. Freedom is found in letting this happen.
- Sometimes God will blow-up that place we romanticize about in-order to get us to the better future we really want. This is tough to accept.
- People and organizations move on. It's not that you couldn't make it work. But often you're growth means it wouldn't be a fit. You should just let someone else have a turn.
- Our tendency to avoid loss keeps us lamenting about the "one that got away." The feeling of liberation that failure can be should be tried. By the way, Derek Rose misses about 58% of his shots. So what are you afraid of?
- Our best work is ahead of us. Some call it evolution, some call it progression, either way you should be embracing the work that is here and ahead.
- We get comfortable and that is the first step to missing our destiny. The past provides great perceived comfort. Mostly because we play the part of writer, producer and director. Be uncomfortable before someone/something makes you that way.
Thoughts Around Good Friday
A very special day for me, Good Friday. In this frame I find myself thinking of my areas of purpose and destiny. My post is not meant to be too personal or a downer.
I am struck by what Good Friday represents. For me, a day of surrendering to your destiny. The man on the cross new what the cost was and how it played into his destiny. Is that courage in me? It is a daunting place to be when you look dead into the eyes of what you were (or are) meant to be. It can scare you, it can leave you feeling exposed, but it always extends its hand.
Is it crazy that people will ignore their own crossroads experience? I used to think so, but not anymore. In America, there has been so much change delivered at a pace unlike any time in our history. Things that were steady are now in question. The history we thought would be our future is not so "for sure." Imagine this, there are people who are holding on tightly to the security promised by an employer (implied or otherwise). All the while, the employer is soon to be disrupted by a start-up in some place thousands of miles away.
What is security?
My advice is to get aligned with who you really are and the destiny that follows. That will weather many, if not all changes. So if you're an artist, then be an artist. Damn the voices that say you can't take such risks or that no one will understand. Anything less will result in regret, or worse, medication to numb you from the truth you aren't willing to face.
I know my post title may have led you to believe I was going to write something religious, but the significance of Good Friday (this one anyway) is about being ok with who you are open and honest. And the courage to go where your destiny is leading. For whatever you may think of the man, Jesus did a beautiful job of it.
My Way Of Life-Everyday
The following is a quote that describes my pursuits-every day:
"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." – Theodore Roosevelt