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When I was a kid, I sat in the back of a lot of dramatic, late-night church services. Often the preacher or evangelist would tell a story about our fellow Christians in Russia, China, or Cuba (communist countries were seemingly interchangeable) being surrounded by soldiers in a church and forced to recant their faith or risk execution. No matter the details, the story was always followed with a challenge: “Would you be willing to die for your faith?”
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Realistic is the adjective of cynics. Wherever you encounter skeptics, naysayers, and charlatans, you will always encounter this word. I'm not saying it's a bad word, that there's no logic to it, or that it's completely irrelevant. I'm just saying... who cares whether something is realistic or not? You might as well leave this word to the cynics—let them have it. Let them own it. It won't do you any good anyway. Realistic is used to do two things simultaneously: one, to criticize. Two, to justify.
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What's the bravest thing you've ever done? I asked this question last week and was flooded with hundreds of great responses. Here are many of them, with links to the people who were brave enough to share. (All of these comments were shared publicly, and there are also 80+ responses on our Facebook page ...
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One of the questions I'm repeatedly asked in interviews is, “Aren't you afraid of all the dangerous countries?" It's usually followed by questions like "What's the worst thing that has happened to you?"
Despite 100 interviews over the past three months on book tour, I'm still not very good at the soundbyte. I have countries that try to deport me upon arrival and countries that write an official government response to my frustration at their bureaucracy. In a decade full of active traveling, I've also had a few more serious problems as well ...
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I recently read two books about the choices people make when faced with the knowledge of their forthcoming death. The first book is called Last Acts, and was written by a doctor who worked predominantly with hospice patients. Throughout the book, people make different choices—some seek to create closure with their loved ones and prepare as much as possible to say farewell to life as we know it. Others refuse to accept the reality of their forthcoming death and try to fight as long as possible ...
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Most of the time, the obvious way around an obstacle isn't the only way. Looking for another option is called the unconventional strategy—when you have the same goal as anyone else, but you find a different way to achieve it. It works in education, career, personal finance, social causes, politics, relationships, etc. Oh, and it can even work in sports and contests too.
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I did a media call for a journalist on the subject of “time management” recently. When I heard the topic, I was worried: one, I don't think I'm that great at time management ... and two, I'm not even sure such a thing exists. You can't manage time; it exists independently of any choice you make. I tend to think more about managing energy and managing projects—as for time itself, that's another story altogether.
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If you are confident, they will say you are arrogant.
If you are deliberate, they will say you are too sure of yourself.
If you have a sense of purpose, they will say you are self-absorbed.
If you know who you are, they will ask, “Who are you, anyway?”
If you believe in kindness and compassion, they will say you are naïve.
If you are a dreamer, they will say “join the real world.”
If you are a rebel, they will try to shut you down.
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Here's a fun exercise: take 60 seconds and write down the peak moments of your life. A peak moment is a fixed point in time that has strong, positive memories. You summited the mountain! You achieved something monumental! Things will be different now. The obvious ones are things like weddings, births, graduations, and so on. But pay attention to the others as well. When you look back on how far you've come thus far (whether you're 15 years old, 80 years old, or somewhere in between), what stands out?
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I like thinking about hypothetical questions, and this one is a good start. Most of us have some kind of dream trapped within us that has somehow become stifled by the fear of failure. So, yes, it's good to think about this question and bring your answer to the surface. The problem, though, is that most things that are worth doing involve a real possibility of failure. Marriages fail, other relationships falter, businesses close their doors all the time. A big goal, like the ones we looked at recently, always involves a certain degree of risk.
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I started writing the Agenda series in Algeria two months ago, in preparation for the book launch and a week of guest blogging at Powells.com. There are a few points I left out of the series, most of which I decided were irrelevant to the message. For example, I'm very passionate about travel and entrepreneurship, but I didn't write much about them in the series, because these are two expressions (not the only ones) of the non-conformist life. Not everyone wants to travel or own a business, and while I'll continue to do much of my work for those who do, I also understand that there is more than one way to create your own independence.
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Welcome to Part III of The Agenda. Here is Part I (Ask Why) and here is Part II (The Individual as Hero) ...
I was depressed like everyone else after 9/11. Having just been in NYC the week before made it especially poignant—I remembered walking around a lower Manhattan that would never be the same after that Tuesday. I spent that fall thinking about the big questions of life—what am I really here for? Since it's obvious there is evil in the world, where can I find the good?
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Welcome to Part II of The Agenda. Part I is here. I don't follow professional or amateur sports, but every two years, I love watching the Olympics. I enjoy the stories, the years of training without reward, all in pursuit of a big dream. To give it all in pursuit of such a dream—I think this is a good thing. If people are dreaming and striving hard to achieve their dream, brushing off the criticism they receive and overcoming the obstacles they encounter, the quest becomes life-affirming to themselves and inspiring to the spectators around them.
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In 2009, I visited with Seth Godin and his Alternative MBA students. Afterwards, I asked Seth for advice. “I know it's a long list,” I said, “But what's one thing you think I can improve upon?”
He said, “I think you need more of an agenda. Consensus is overrated!” That was a very Seth thing to say, and I liked it. For the rest of the year, I thought about the agenda.
This is a six-part series to explain how I think we can change the world. I originally started AONC with the goal of writing for 1,000 people. Now my goal is 100,000 people, and it looks like that's only a year or so away. Lesson learned: small goals turn into big ones if you take them seriously. And also: it's good to be clear on what you're really about.
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