"The Question is not 'Can you make a difference? You already do make a difference. It's just a matter of what kind of difference you want to make." ~ Julia Hill.
The earth spins on it's axis and we call it a day. The moon circles the earth and we call it a month. The earth revolves around the sun and we call it a year. We come into this earth and then we leave it and we call it a life. The question is not 'Can I make a difference?' The question really is ~ What kind of difference do I want to make?
Think about all the people you've come into contact with in your life. The faces and the memories. The lessons you've learned. The things people have said and done that stuck with you. Think about all the people you've worked for and with. The people you've sold to and those you've bought from. The people that have helped you and those that have hurt you. Think about the difference they made. Then think about the difference you made to them.
Sometimes they tell you. Sometimes they don't. Sometimes the thoughts and memories inspire us and sometimes they serve as lessons learned. Each person though makes a difference. Each day the earth spins on it's axis. Each month the moon circles the earth. Each year the earth circles the sun and each life makes a difference to someone. Each person we come into contact with in our lives provides us an opportunity. An opportunity to ask ourselves not the pitiful, self serving, cry of 'Can I make a difference?' ~ But the responsible and life affirming call to action of 'What kind of difference do I want to make?'
Define the difference you want to make - Really define your core competency, what you can give. Because that is what people remember ~ Our core is what we give. We are our value proposition to others. We are what we give and leave with others.
As always, a thought provokng topic. I often wonder what my legacy will be and understand the things I do every day contribute, good and bad.
ReplyDeleteDo you remember that scene from the movie Schindler's List where Schindler is sobbing as he says farewell. He is recognizing if he had sold his watch he could have saved another Jewish life, if he had sold his car another 5 lives. He is in such pain that he hadn't done more to change the world and those Jews who survived were celebrating all he had done to save so many lives.
ReplyDeleteI think when my time is up on this earth, I want to die sobbing in recognition of all I could have done while others recognize the things I have done for them. My prayer is that the group celebrating all I have done to change their lives in a positive way is a large group.
Thanks for this thought Dan.
Michael,
ReplyDeleteThat scene is one of the most poignant and powerful in any movie I can remember. It truly embodies the frustration and feeling of "I should have done so much more". Thank you so much for reading my post. ~ Dan