What Should You Do Differently?

What Should You Do Differently?

Have you ever repeated the same actions while expecting a different outcome? You know that’s the definition of insanity, right? Sometimes we know we need to change, but don’t do it.

Why?

Well to prevent any further craziness on my part I’m doing things differently with my blog. This time I’m going to follow a basic plan for building a platform/brand which is something I ignored in the past. As I’ve mentioned before, I went straight to the dessert and skipped the main meal when I decided to write my first book instead of investing that time into building a platform.  

Fortunately, I recently rediscovered an ebook I downloaded months ago, but never read. It’s from one of my favorite writers, Jeff Goins called “12 STEPS to make a living WRITING” and it’s is perfect for people like me who starting (or re-starting ) to build an online platform.

It’s a short and action oriented ebook. There’s a section in it where Goins talks about a survey taken by a few thousand writers which revealed that,

“The average writer makes less than a dollar a month off their writing.”

 One. Freaking. Dollar.

That’s insane and unacceptable! Goins explains the reason most writers can’t earn real income from their writing is because they haven’t built an online platform they can monetize.

Why?

Most writers don’t have a plan.  

I’m going to follow the steps Goin recommends in his ebook and see where it takes me and in the process I’m going to share my updates publicly to hold myself accountable, to help others who are interested in doing something similar, and to document my journey to better understand what’s working and what’s not when it comes to building an online platform/brand.

If these steps don’t workout, I’ll ask Goins for my money back! 

Goin’s first step is to “Clarify your message with a worldview statement.” He describes the worldview statement as something that,

“The best writers understand intuitively that the writing we love to read has more to do with style than content. In other words, it’s not just what you say, but how you say it.”

He explains it can be general or specific, but the point is to use it like a compass that guides everything we write and why we write it.

Next, he shares the framework below for writing a worldview statement: 

EVERY [PEOPLE GROUP] CAN/SHOULD [ACTION]

First, for the “PEOPLE GROUP” section, I wrote the rough list below of the groups I’m most interested in helping or working with.  

  1. Everyone person
  2. Men
  3. Fathers
  4. Sons
  5. Communicators
  6. People who failed
  7. Aspiring leaders
  8. Broken people
  9. Life maximizers
  10. Regret minimizers
  11. Aspiring change agents
  12. Impact makers
  13. Purpose seekers
  14. Parents
  15. Influencers
  16. Strong men
  17. Strong people
  18. Purpose Maximizers
  19. Motivated people/individuals
  20. Employees
  21. Thinkers
  22. Teenagers
  23. People lacking hope
  24. Christians
  25. Underdogs
  26. Leaders

Next I separated the ones I found most interesting.

  1. Every person
  2. Underdogs
  3. Aspiring leaders
  4. Motivated people/individuals
  5. Leaders

The two that resonate most are leaders and motivated individuals. I love the idea of helping regular people become extraordinary leaders, so I’d like to focus on motivated individuals who don’t know or fully understand their leadership potential and their impact.

The second half of the equation is the “ACTION” that the group should take so I wrote another list.

  1. Learn to lead
  2. Reach their potential
  3. Make an impact
  4. Have positive influence
  5. Live, love, and lead on purpose (I’ve used this before)
  6. Be the leader needed
  7. Focus on impact and not income
  8. Learn to communicate
  9. Maximize their gifts
  10. Set high goals/ set goals
  11. Live on purpose
  12. Lead on purpose
  13. Push their comfort zone
  14. Choose their mindset, environment, and vision
  15. Develop their own leadership style
  16. Learn to lead themselves
  17. Fill the leadership void
  18. Pursue success
  19. Communicate on purpose
  20. Leave a legacy
  21. Have influence/ be a positive influence

From the list above, the actions I liked most are:

  • Learn to lead
  • Learn to communicate
  • Reach their potential
  • Make an impact
  • Be a positive influence

Next I narrowed my list further:

  1. Learn to lead
  2. Reach their potential
  3. Be a positive influence.

Finally, I wrote about 20 initial drafts and came up with the following worldview statement:

Inspired individuals can make the world a better place when they push their comfort zones, develop their leadership skills, and help others win.

I know my worldview statement will change, but for now it’s important to choose one and go with it. I’ve learned it’s better to start and then tweak as you go instead of always tweaking and never starting.

Don’t laugh at my statement!

It’s a work in progress. Later on, I’ll add a problem that I help others solve but for now it’s easier to move on and edit later. 

Okay so what about you?

What area of your life have you been doing the same thing but are expecting different results? What can you do differently?

Is Looking for One’s Passion Overrated?

Is Looking for One’s Passion Overrated?

“How do I find my passion?” 

I recently communicated with a college student who asked this question. I’ve heard this question so many times I feel like I’m going to explode!

This topic reminds of something that happened when I went shopping with my wife to help her look for a birthday gift for a little girl.  We were looking for a t-shirt with a unicorn. And after just a few minutes of searching in the mall, I gave up and went to the men’s department to look for something for myself. As I walked to the rear of the store I noticed a cute pink t-shirt with a unicorn on it.

I immediately texted my wife,

“I found it!”

The search for passion is similar to my experience shopping.

The best way of finding your passion is by not looking for it and going after what you really care about.

Whether you’re in college, out of college, or in your 40’s it applies equally.

Our culture has become so obsessed with idea that you have to “find your passion” to have a career, to be happy, and to ride unicorns into the sunset. But you have a better chance of finding your passion when you stop looking for it.

‘Find your passion’ makes for a great blog post title and a great commencement speech, but aside from that, it’s impractical when it comes to searching for your vocation or work that really matters.

Let me explain…

Searching for one’s passion hasn’t worked for anyone I’ve ever met in real life. I’m not saying it can’t be done or it isn’t real, but there are other ways of finding work that matters or is engaging.

I’m about to share what has worked for me and real people I know as opposed to famous people who give commencement speeches.

1. Look for Pain, not Passion

The people I know have focused on addressing a pain or some problem they felt compelled to solve. After committing to do something about that problem the passion developed over time. Career coach Dan Miller says,

“Passion is something you discover after you’ve started something.”

Passion wasn’t there from the beginning. It may come later, but time is better spent identifying a pain (or problem) you are curious about solving. There’s purpose in pain.

At the beginning, most people start with an interest and not a passion. Am I saying that passion is not real? No. Not at all. But you have to do something and have experiences in order to have enough time to get a sense of what really interests you.

Passion only shows up after you commit to an interest and become consistent.

These famous people who give inspiring commencement speeches who preach about finding your passion actually committed to something first, had some failures, made some adjustments, but they kept going.

The road to success people talk about is not really a straight path, but an unpaved, winding, dirt road that looks more like an obstacle course. This reminds me of the Japanese proverb,

“Fall down seven, get up eight.

Okay, so where do you start? Here’s what I figured out. Just start with your interests even if more than one. But why you ask? Your action removes doubt. The more action you take the more clarity you will get.

For example, personally, it has always pained me to see people with tons of potential waste it. That’s why I really enjoy coaching, leadership development, and mentoring. I want to see people do more than they thought possible. What about you?

What bothers you the most?

What problem do you feel especially interested in addressing?

What drives you crazy?

You don’t have to solve world hunger. Take baby steps and volunteer somewhere, intern or just talk people in the fields you’re curious about.

At this point in your life you’re not looking for a lifelong commitment, but an opportunity to experiment, learn and gain new experiences.

2. Look for what makes you come alive.

Theologian Howard Thurman said,

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do that because what the world needs are people who have come alive.”

He’s right!

Which activities, subjects or issues get you the most excited? And by excitement, this can also mean anger or hyped up.

So what issue or problem makes you the most upset or motivated to do something? What social issues or problems drive you crazy?

The problem is most people assume that PASSION = HAPPINESS. That’s not always the case.

You can be passionate about addressing some problem, helping people overcome some challenges like addiction, or you’re just angered by abuse or discrimination. Doing work that brings out your passion does not mean you’ll be overcome with happiness while you’re doing it.

Instead of happiness, I’m finding fulfillment, which lasts longer.

3. What’s your gift (maybe God-given)?

I love public speaking, but not just any type. I love inspiring, encouraging, and mentoring people. But I didn’t know I was good at this until people started telling me. Colleagues would ask me where I learned to speak and how many years I had been practicing.

Public speaking is one of those things that I’m naturally good at but compared to best I’m still a baby in terms of how much I have to learn.

But the point of all this to stay that maybe you have some ability or talent that you’re really good at. Maybe there’s something that comes naturally to you but is difficult for others. This reminds me of a quote from John Maxwell who said,

“God’s gift to me is my potential. My gift back to God is what I do with that potential.”

When I speak encouraging words, I get this feeling unlike anything else. It feels like time stops. I love building leaders who go out make an impact and not just an income.

4. Whom can you serve?

Another reason why passion seekers get stuck, frustrated, and even more lost is because they’re too focused on themselves. One thing that has really helped me is understanding whom I can best serve with my gift and interests.

Where I am now is not where I started.

My first job out of high school was coaching a middle school basketball team. It wasn’t until years later that I realized how much I enjoyed leading and mentoring young people. That experience was one of the clues in helping me uncover who I loved to serve and how.

So who are you most interested in helping or serving?

Put all these things together, answer these questions and gradually you’ll start to find clues about what’s motivating you internally. External motivation is good, but the power is really in intrinsic motivation because that’s what will keep you going.

But here’s a warning:

Even after discovering my strong interest in public speaking, communication and leadership development it still took commitment, deliberate practice, and courage to step out and do it over and over and over and over again.

There’s more to this than just ‘finding your passion.’

In the end, my wife didn’t buy the unicorn t-shirt but we found something much better for the little girl. Forget about passion for the moment and focus on what you can contribute, experiment, and then stick with something long enough for the passion to develop.

If you don’t like it you can move on to the next thing.

In my book Leader by Choice, I go into more detail not just on passion, but how to find your mission, your vocation (work that really matters to you), and self-leadership.

This post was originally published in ThriveGlobal.