Your daily dose of awesome. Watch for tomorrow’s email for even more fun stuff.
Business:
If you suffer from Bright Shiny Object Syndrome, enjoy this free video series by my friend, Kelly McCausey.
Free Resource: Bright Shiny Object Syndrome Management.
I also wanted to share another business awesomization resource with you.
I recently did an interview with Leonie Dawson that was really good, if I do say so myself. Now, fair warning, she DOES say the “F” word in it so if you prefer not to hear that then pass on this one and I’ll have more for you soon. But if that doesn’t bother you, like it does not bother me, then the message is definitely worth a listen.
The World:
I had a quick chat with my good friend, Cindy Bidar on Skype. Here’s how it went.
Cindy: Isn’t it funny that people struggle the most with how to awesomize the world, and yet when you first talked about that you said, “That one is easy.” LOL!
Nicole: Yep. I think it’s a confidence thing, really. That you DO matter and your actions DO make a difference, even when you feel like there’s no point and the action is so tiny that it’s not making a difference. IT IS.
Cindy: Oooh, you should write about that in your next Awesomization Nation email. 😉
So I am.
I am surprised by how many of our peeps struggle with the “Awesomizing the World” part of the challenge. So let’s break it down a touch to see my take on it.
- Awesomize – to do something tiny to improve
- The World – anything outside of our own selves.
For instance, there are over 147 MILLION orphans on earth.
One hundred and forty-seven MILLION. Think about that number.
Also, just in the USA, each year, approximately 2.7 million animals are euthanized (1.2 million dogs and 1.4 million cats).
It’s pretty overwhelming, right? It makes it easy to start thinking “What’s the point? WHY? I can’t possibly save them all!”
When I think about those numbers, or the more than 840,000 people who die each year from lack of clean water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes…. including large number of children, I just want to curl up and sob. Sometimes I do.
But what then?
Then, I go and I reread the starfish story. And, I remember that it’s better to save one than to ignore them all because I can’t save them all.
Here it is as a reminder if you haven’t read it recently:
“Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.
One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”
The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”
“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.
To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”
At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said,
“It made a difference for that one.”
― Loren Eiseley
In my case, no I can’t save every orphaned child. But I have helped some and I sure made a difference to one very special one in my life and her siblings.
No, I can’t save every stray animal, but I am fostering on a regular basis and it matters to THEM.
And, no I can’t bring clean water to every person in Africa alone. But I can do something and share here with you how important it is, and I know the results will be greater than if I hadn’t.
YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE. The little things matter – and so do you!
Life:
Pat yourself on the back today for everything that you’ve accomplished thus far. What you’re doing DOES matter. Every single step forward has an impact you are yet to discover. So keep up the good work!
Hugs and high fives,
Nicole