As you may know, I'm a big fan of Donald Miller. I've read a couple of his books and I'm very interested in his Storyline concept. I think he is very inspirational. I also follow his blog and his Twitter feed, so occasionally I'll do his challenges. His main idea is to make your life a great story, one that people would want to tell about you or read. Here's a challenge he posed this past weekend. He says:
3 Keys to Ruling the World
1. Move from fuzzy to clear ambitions: The reason
Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill and Mother Theresa all lived great
stories is because they, and the rest of the world, knew exactly what
they wanted. King wanted racial equality, Churchill wanted to defeat
Hitler and Mother Theresa wanted dignity for the poor. So, if we want to
live impactful stories, our ambitions must be just as clear. Take out a
piece of paper today and write down what your primary ambitions are.
Meditate and pray about them. This one step will make you a much more
compelling person. Try doing this the second you finish reading this
article. It won't be long before people around you begin to see you as a
leader, simply because you have clear ambitions.
So here's mine. I want to become a certified makeup artist. I eventually want to work freelance so that I don't have to be tied down to a 40 hour per week job, and I can spend more time with my loved ones. I want to make brides feel the best they ever have on their wedding day. I want to give free makeovers to low-income or homeless women who are going on job interviews. I want to help people find the beauty that is within themselves, while also discovering new elements of my inner and outer beauty. It may not be as noble as wanting to defeat Hitler, but it's a start.
2. Move from conflict avoidant to conflict engaging:
All great characters have to go through conflict. Without conflict,
stories are boring and characters don't change. Real-life people are the
same. The more we avoid conflict, the less impact we will have. Are you
avoiding conflict? Procrastinating? Not reconciling with somebody?
Write down three things you are avoiding, tackle them today, and
tomorrow you'll be living with less stress. And you'll have an enormous
amount of self-respect. Great characters engage conflict peacefully and
easily.
A. I have been avoiding telling my students that I won't be back next year. I am worried about how they will react. I'm worried they'll be empowered that they chased me off, and start attempting to do the same to every new teacher.
B. I have been procrastinating creating a strict budget for myself. I need to keep better track of my spending so I can save money.
C. I have not been going to the gym. I waste money every month on a gym membership that I don't use!
3. Choose meaning over pleasure: Pleasure isn't always
bad. In fact, pleasure is mostly good. But when pleasure drives us, we
end up living sad stories. Our ambitions should be more meaningful. When
we choose what we want our lives to be about, we would do better to
choose relational endeavors. Sure, it's okay to make a lot of money. But
if our lives are all about making money, we won't contribute much to
the well being of our loved ones. Make your ambitions heartfelt. Choose
to want a great marriage, to have a well-loved family, to be a
supportive listener, to be a protective leader. Make each of your
ambitions count by connecting them to the well-being of others.
I want to bring joy and laughter to others, whether it is through the art of theatre, giving people makeovers, teaching theatre classes on the side, or just spending time with friends.
Expect me to be ruling the world by tomorrow.
