Growing Your Contribution To The World

I want to help a lot of people, and make a real impact in this world. I want to be a force for good that encourages, inspires, and leads others to maximize their potential in service of others.

I have a feeling you’re following along because you want to do the same :)

Abraham Maslow defines purpose as the combination of two things: The pursuit of one’s own potential to become all that we can be (self-actualization) and to use your gifts and talents in service of the world (to help others). We all share the same purpose, but it’s the application of our help and the direction of our growth that varies.

I’m in the process of becoming a world changemaker myself, and having thought a lot about it I want to share the progression everyone needs to go through to maximize their contribution to the world.

And it all starts with self-improvement.

Your capacity to impact others is directly correlated to the size of your self-growth.

Your impact is limited to lower levels when you’re stuck, and it expands when you expand. Many people could multiply their impact simply by improving themselves, their processes, their energy levels, and their discipline so that they have more to give and can give more effectively.

Beyond the self-improvement work, then there’s a progression in how your contribution can be expressed into the world. Making a difference starts with making better choices and leading a more purposeful life-style. It’s shopping more sustainably, incorporating more mindful practices, being more tolerant and accepting of others, incorporating philanthropy in your career, and modeling what it means to live a purposeful life.

Then after that, you’re in a position to give more to causes you care about. Of course this includes your money, but it also includes your time, talent, networks, advocacy, and energy. Most people think to start their giving journey here but the extent of it is limited by the self-improvement and embodied lifestyle that comes before it.

And finally, once you feel like you’re truly giving yourself to causes you care about, now it’s time to lead your own initiatives - Fundraisers, movements, communities, projects. You begin to enroll others and offer them opportunities to live and give for purpose. 

To summarize, this is the simple progression: Pursue your own self-growth so that it’s not a limiting factor. Live in such a way that incorporates impact into your everyday choices. Give your gifts, talents, and resources to causes and others in need. And finally lead your own initiatives that invites other people to join you in this work.

That’s how you make a difference. That’s how you grow your contribution to the world. And that’s what you’re already doing, starting here and investing in your self-growth.

If there’s someone in your life who is making a big difference in the world, send them this episode to acknowledge them and teach them how to expand on that even further!