Will You Change the World?

I get up every morning, determined both to change the world and have to one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult. -E.B. White

What if we woke up every morning, with the intention of changing the world, and having the best day of our life? Simply answered, we would have a fabulous day - regardless of what the outcomes were.

You see, we all are able to change the world each day. It may be in something as simple as a smile to a stranger on the street. That smile contagiously crosses that stranger's face who then smiles at someone else. Soon, more and more people are lifted by the kindness and joy of a stranger, and the world is a bit happier. A simple smile. And you never know - maybe one of those strangers was on their last thread of hope - and that smile came at just the right time to push them through. You never know the impact your actions make on others - but TRUST that your actions change other's lives in powerful ways! Make the choice to make an impact.

When we wake up each day with the intention of contributing to our purpose on earth, we will ALWAYS change the world. But, the tragedy comes when we wake up and go through the motions of another day - forgetting the gratitude and purpose we have for our life. You are in the drivers seat - it's your journey, it's your purpose - will you decide to change the world today or just let it pass?

Live with intention. Live boldly! Live without excuse or apology. Be the change you wish to see (Ghandi). Stretch. Reach. Find your simple joy and then give it to someone else.

It's just a smile. Or so you thought. Go out now, and change the world.

You Have All Of The Answers You Need...

“At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.”
-Lao-tzu

How many times have you had to make a big decision and while you have a 'gut feeling' about it, you still seek other people's opinions, just to make sure you are on track?

Intuition is one of the strongest senses we have, yet often the most ignored. We tend to rationalize everything in life, seek other's approvals, and weigh the odds, prior to making many decisions. But, more often than not, the right answer is the one that you feel deep down inside; it comes out without much thought, analyzation or discussion.

The reason is this:

• Your brain rationalizes decisions. But, the world is not a rational place, so rational decisions are hardly fulfilling.
• The heart feels decisions. But, many times the heart can lead with emotion and get caught up in itself.
• The gut is where your true decisions come from. Your internal instinct or 'gut' takes the immediate responses of the brain and the heart and combines them to tell you what the right decision is for you.

I challenge you to trust yourself. You know yourself better than any one else. Only you know what will make you happy, who you want to be, and the legacy you will leave the world. Trust that internal response to life... it knows the way. Listen for it's voice, have confidence in it's direction and hang on as you enjoy the ride.

“At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.” -Lao-tzu

Decide that you want it...

Decide that you want it, more than you are afraid it. - Bill Cosby

How many things have we missed out on in life because we were afraid of them? As we 'grow up', we learn that failures are difficult, heartbreaks are painful, rejection is intolerable, and loss is unbearable. We create boundaries to keep us safe from those things. When we really want something that causes us to go out of our comfort zone - many times, we won't. It isn't because we don't want it, but because we are afraid of what will happen if we don't get it.

It may cost us our pride if we fail, we may cry if it hurts, we may loose some of our confidence if we are told we aren't the 'right one' or 'good enough' and we may have an empty heart if we loose something we really wanted. We decide that the one thing we want isn't worth pursuing because were aren't willing to take the risk of those possible downfalls.

So, I challenge you this week to ask yourself if there is something in your life that you really want, but haven't gone after because you were afraid it? Find strength in being ok with (and even celebrating!) the failure vs. comfort in always staying safe. Safe is good, but for those few things that you really want in your life, stretch, dream big and go out on a limb. The very least you will then be able to say is that you gave it your best shot and you won't ever wonder.

Decide that you want it, more than you are afraid of it. Those who never take risks never get what they really want...

The Champion & The Underdog

Compete like the champion, train like the underdog.
As funny as it sounds, I saw this quote on the back of a guy's shirt. I am still researching the origination, and will update this blog if I can find the author... For now - I loved it and thought it would be a great concept to think about...

Compete Like The Champion
This advice is good whether you are in a marathon, weight loss program, or just going through your everyday life tasks...

Live your life as if you have prepared your best and there is no reason why you won't come out victorious, in every effort. When you believe you will come out on top, chances are, you will. When you believe you won't, well, chances are, you won't. There is an incredible power to the belief the mind holds.

I think back to a wish I worked on granting for a wishkid that had a rare form of cancer. He had wanted to go to a Dallas Cowboys Football game and despite getting sicker, he was holding out for his game. Every day I went to go visit him, no matter how sick he had become, he told me he was making it to his wish. As he got sicker, the doctors said that he would not be able to travel for the game and we would have to cancel his wish. I promised him we would do our best to bring the Cowboys to him. Shortly after this, he fell into a coma, and the doctors said it would be 'hours'. We let the Cowboys know of his wish and within a day, they had sent a box of gifts and letters. I took the box to the hospital and asked his family to open it, in front of him. Despite him being in a coma, every time they read a letter, his heart rate would increase. We knew he was happy. That evening, my wishkid passed away. He had exceed the doctor's predictions by a few days. I am quite certain, he was waiting for his wish. He believed it would come, and held on until it did. As my mentor, Mr. Larson has always said, 'what the mind and heart believes, the body achieves.' When you want it and believe you can have it, you will.

Train Like The Underdog
What if you knew you were up for a big promotion, but the person you were up against had more experience and qualifications for the job than you did? You would do all you could to put your best foot forward, highlight how your passion is stronger than you competitor's qualifications and you would dive into all you could to better position yourself than your competitor. Consider the Olympic athletes that come into a race, the underdog, and have an absolute upset by winning it all? They trained knowing they would have to bring out more than the person who was expected to win. The person who expected to win, took it for granted and forgot that they too, needed to train as if they were the underdog.

What if you could look at your life 'training' as if you were the underdog? Would you take less for granted and focus more on rising above the things that keep you from achieving what you want? Would you lead with more hope, more focus and more commitment to overcoming your obstacles?

Compete like the champion, train like the underdog. This makes a powerful combination of effort and drive that makes you unstoppable. And we all want to be unstoppable. Perhaps this is one of the secrets to getting all that you want.

How bad do you want it and how much are you willing to work to get it? Anything is possible. It's up to you to believe.

Do It Anyway

This week's blog is inspired from a sign that hung on a wall in Mother Teresa's office. (see end of blog)

It is easy to let life get us down. When we get hurt by others, we tend to trust less. When we give all we have and 'fail' anyways, we learn not to try so hard. When we go out of our way to help someone, and they end up being ungrateful, we back down from being so generous. When we spend our lives building our homes, our banks, and our sense of being and then a tragedy takes them all away - we feel helpless and broken - afraid to start over again. When we put our hearts 'out there' and they get broken, they become numb and choose to not let themselves be as vulnerable next time.

But - we have two choices each moment. Whenever something comes into our lives we didn't want, expect or ask for - we can choose to let it get the best of us or we can chose to overcome it and let it bring out the best in us. Letting it get the best of us kills our spirit, while letting it bring out the best in us awakens our spirit and allows us to be more fully alive. How powerful would it be to fail, and fail magnificently at that, and yet, smile, and keep moving forward, as if it was just a bump in the road? In other words, if you fall (and we all do!), fall forwards.

I challenge you this week, and each one following - in those times when life is throwing you a curveball, when you feel broken, when you have been hurt, when you have 'failed' - GIVE THE WORLD THE BEST YOU'VE GOT ANYWAY. In doing that - you will overcome the 'stuff' that has weighed you down in the past and you will rise above that 'stuff' to live the life you were meant to live.


Do It Anyway
People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered,

LOVE THEM ANYWAY

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives,

DO GOOD ANYWAY

If you are successful, you win false friends and
true enemies,

SUCCEED ANYWAY

The good you do will be forgotten
tomorrow,

DO GOOD ANYWAY

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable,

BE HONEST AND FRANK ANYWAY

What you spent years building may be destroyed overnight,

BUILD ANYWAY

People really need help but may attack you if you help them,

HELP PEOPLE ANYWAY

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth,

GIVE THE WORLD THE BEST YOU'VE GOT ANYWAY.

Two Questions To Ask

If you've seen 'The Bucket List', you know that it's about two men who have been told they have limited time on earth. They decide to create a list of experiences to complete prior to 'kicking the bucket'. Appropriately, they name this list, 'The Bucket List'.

The men travel to the far ends of the earth, experiencing the finest restaurants, the most beautiful views, racing fancy cars, skydiving... and then they find themselves overlooking the Egyptian Pyramids, discussing life. In their discussion, one of the characters says that 'The Pharaohs believed that in order to enter heaven, a person must affirmatively answer two questions: “Did you find joy in your life?” and “Did your life bring joy to others?”' The two sat in contemplation of those two questions.

I was quite inspired by those two questions. Both of equal importance.

Have you found joy in your life? We spend so much time staring at the door that is closed in our lives that we don't see the ten doors open to us. A wise man, Mr. Larry Larson, recently shared with me, 'you can't miss what you don't have'. But yet, we tend to focus so much of our energy on what we wish we had, who we wish we were and where we hope our lives head. Instead of missing what you don't have, can you find the joy in your own life? Can you be filled with happiness for no apparent reason? Can you wake up and thank your God for a new chance to make the world a better place? Can you find the joy in who you are, right here, right now.

Secondly, did your life bring others joy? Did you do something just for the purpose of making someone smile today? Did you go out of your way to make sure someone else felt special? Have you gone out of your comfort zone, just to pick someone's spirit up? Did you make someone laugh?

I think regardless of your faith, your focus or your goals, these questions are a simple way to pull us back on track in our lives when we are not sure if we are on the right path.

One of the last experiences fulfilled on 'The Bucket List' was to 'laugh until you cry'.

I wish you tears of joy this week as you set forth on living each day fully. If we live each day without expectation of another, we truly would live without regret, would be unafraid to take chances, and wouldn't have to wait for a dramatic experience to see the wonders of the world.

Here's to your journey, and finding the joy.