A simple formula to become your best self
You are experiencing a historic event.
One third of the world – close to 3 billion people – are on lockdown, and I don’t need to list the frightening and lethal statistics… they’re beyond sobering.
We have talked about what the coronavirus crisis has revealed to you about your foundation and shoring it up.
Now let’s talk about something way more salient.
Long ago I wrote a song with the lyric, “It’s only when you lose it all that you know what you’ve really got.”
Think about that for a moment and then answer two questions.
Who are you?
The second most important question is, who are you in this crisis?
What has the coronavirus revealed about you as a person?
When things get tense, when the world and your future are in turmoil do you get…
- depressed or motivated?
- angry or activated?
- bored or busy?
- stagnant or resourceful?
- Are you part of the the problem or the solution?
- Do you take, or sacrifice?
- Are you a scarcity thinker, or an abundance thinker?
More than likely this crisis has revealed some areas you’re proud of, and some you’d like to improve.
Now, my most important question, is, who will you be?
Do you see the extraordinary opportunity you have?
Every one of the above questions was a choice, not a given.
In other words, you have a choice as to who you will be and how you will act.
This is exactly why I say…
This is your moment.
This is your chance to create your best self.
Your best relationships.
Your best career.
Your best life.
By the actions you and I choose right now we each have the chance in an historic time, to become our best selves.
Or not.
So, to create your best self, relationships, career and life there is one simple principle you must follow.
Choose Significance over Success.
This is a principle which has been taught to me by all of my mentor/friends, particularly Daniel Burrus, Brian Tracy, and Dr Nido Qubein.
Success… is usually measured in revenue, profit, accomplishment, and reputation.
Significance… is gauged more by the lives you change for the better. (Not the number of lives so much as how you’ve changed them).
Most of us achieve success, then from our success pursue significance, ie we make money so we can donate to charity, we advance in our careers and then we mentor others, etc.
I am saying in this time of desperation, flip the script.
Step out in significance without the promise of success.
Not that we don’t continue our jobs and reinvent our lives, but to do our jobs and reinvent our lives by acting on significance.
I am asking myself, who can I help? How can I serve? What are the real needs of people now?
And here is the beautiful thing, as described by Daniel Burrus…
When you step out in significance, success is a natural by-product.
Everyone loves and respects when someone does things simply for the good they’re doing, with no expectation of return.
Good deeds beget good outcomes.
A story…
There was a man who wanted to commit suicide. His friend said look, if you’re going to die anyway, why not die doing something helpful?
Both of them being Christians the friend said, go across into (an African country, I don’t remember which) and start handing out bibles, which were forbidden. Someone will ultimately shoot you but you’ll do some good along the way.
So, he gathered a bunch of bibles, crossed the border and started his final mission.
Unfortunately, he ran out of bibles before being shot.
So he went back for more bibles and was even bolder in handing them out.
Again, he ran out of bibles.
This time when he went back for more bibles he told his friend, “I’m not going to kill myself, I found my purpose, handing out bibles.”
Please extrapolate if you’re not a Christ Follower because the story works on principle.
How can YOU step out in significance and become a light in this dark time in history?
Who will you be?
Live truly, truly live,
Mike
