Take it to The Next Level

Tonight, I was inspired to write you a more personal blog than normal. I’ve been thinking a lot about this website, my goals, ambitions, and dreams. I’ve been thinking how I can make this site more valuable, inspiring, and authentic. So basically, I’m just going to share some of those thoughts and ideas with you.

In conversation with my friend last week, I was asked, “Who are your heroes?” In other words, who are the people you look to as leaders of exemplary lives. I must embarrassingly admit now, that at the time, few if any names came to my mind. So I told her, “I’d think about it.” And have been thinking about it ever since.

The other day, as I sipped my coffee, I wrote down every hero I could think of. A lot of them are already listed on my inspiration page, but I tried to go even further than that list to really make sure I’d have a diverse group of examples. Then, I used one of Warren Buffett’s techniques, which is to write out the reasons why I like these people. In doing so, you realize most of the admirable qualities are things like kindness, generosity, etc. and traits that anyone can have. So here's my list.

Smart, Disciplined, Purposeful, Kind, Generous, Healing, Motivated, Strong, Confident, Creative, Wise, Enterprising, Driven, Persistent, and Hardworking. Apparently, these are the characteristics in my heroes I find admirable, and traits I will strive to live up to. Anybody can be a hero, even if they don’t wear a cape and fight crime. I generally think we’re all so hard on ourselves, that sometimes we forget about qualities like these.

Using Your Power

Every hero has a power. Discovering that power can require a heroic effort in itself, but I genuinely believe we all have different gifts and ways we communicate our powers to the world. In my life, I’m often told by others that talking to me is helpful and that I have a very kind personality.

If you know me well, feel free to agree or disagree in the comments. I’m not attempting to flatter myself here, but I want to draw attention to this idea of using what you’ve got. Some people are brave, selfless, and strong. Some people are so brilliant, they write the textbooks everyone else learns from. We all have our powers, and it’s how you choose to use your power that makes you heroic.

Summary

As I read through the list of characteristics of my heroes, I almost feel what Joseph Campbell labels as, “The hero’s call to adventure”. In using tools like listening, kindness, and thoughtfulness, I can make a real impact on people's lives. This blog is by far the best platform I could ask for, as I can reach billions of people, pretty much for free. Essentially, this post is to acknowledge that although I have my flaws and weaknesses, I’m beginning to attune more to my strengths.

I’m working on myself relentlessly, not for me. For you. It’s the value and joy, and connection with other real people, that motivates me to write. It’s readers like you, who’ve found this post one way or another, and have decided to take a moment out of your day to read, and hopefully find something uplifting for yourself. So, thank you for that. And, please stay tuned, as this is my vow to take this blog to the next level.

Different Kinds Of Faith

Greetings from a rainy Saturday night in San Francisco. I’m sorry I didn’t publish a post on Thursday like I normally do, but hopefully this will make up for it. The other day, I had coffee with a friend. We had one of those rare conversations that pierces straight through all the facade and veneer and just really touches something deep within you, the kind of conversation you wish you could just bottle and place on a high shelf somewhere. So, I wanted to share something from that conversation with you.

Until recently, I always associated the word, “faith” with religion. Probably because that’s the context in which it's most commonly used and also I never really took the extra time to think very hard about it. But last week in my reading, I came across a quote by Swami Vivekananda which made me see faith in a different way. What we actually mean by the word "faith" is belief in something we have no real evidence to support. But this stretches far beyond belief in religion.

Here are some other things we use faith for: belief in yourself, belief in your own ideas and dreams. You can believe in luck. You can have faith that another person will come through for you when you need them. There are countless other ways that we exercise our mental faith muscles aside from religious affiliation. No matter what it actually is that you believe, your faith is simply the word we use to describe your conviction in that belief.

Summary

As you wrap up your weekend, consider all the things you hold to be capital-T Truth. Additionally, think about the strength of your faith in those beliefs. In the movie, Pearl Harbor one of the actors says: “Victory belongs to those who believe in it the most.” Sometimes, it’s not actually external obstacles that get in your way, but your own self-doubt. Having and building strong faith, regardless if you're religious or not can be essential for persisting and pushing past the doubt.