There are many ways to live life. One approach is to aim to make a positive contribution during your time on the planet. Different people do this in different ways.
Some people aim to encourage other people in their daily lives. They may do this in the family, school, workplace or society. They want to plant seeds of hope that encourage both present and future generations.
Some people aim to serve something greater than themselves. They may then aim to build on their strengths, follow strategies that work and help other people to achieve success.
Some people may follow a sense of vocation. This may be their calling or the things they cannot help but do. They may then express this through various vehicles on the way towards doing valuable work.
Some people focus on a specific purpose and translate this into following certain principles. They then aim to do their best during their time on the planet. Sometimes this can lead to them experiencing a sense of peace.
Some people aim to do fulfilling work that helps others. Such people are not interested in trying to become famous. They simply aim to do positive work that helps other people to find fulfilment.
Many people want to make a positive contribution during their time on the planet. They may want to encourage their loved ones and help others to be happy. Some may also want to pass on knowledge that helps future generations.
Different people choose different ways to clarify the contribution they want to make during their lives. Some people explore questions similar to those asked by Buckminster Fuller at a challenging time in his life.
Bearing in mind his strengths, he focused on how to use these to help other people. Bucky went on to do pioneering work and produce books such as Operating Manual For Spaceship Earth.
Imagine that you want to clarify the positive contribution you want to make in your life or work. One approach is to explore the following steps.
You can clarify the positive
things that you have been given
What are the positive things you have been given in your life? Different people give different answers to this question. Here are some of the things they mention.
The positive things that I have
been given in my life have been:
Growing up in a loving home … Parents who encouraged me to follow my interests … Living in different countries as a child … Having stability in the family but the opportunity to learn about different cultures.
Being encouraged to build on my strengths though I was not good at school … Learning how to take charge of my own learning … Travelling on my own as a youngster to follow my football team around the country.
Spending several years in a job I did not like which motivated me to find and follow the work I love … Having a superb mentor in my career … Being given the opportunity to use my skills to help people every day.
Being fortunate in finding my life partner … Learning from our children as they grew up … Having the opportunity to take care of my parents as they grew older … Continuing to learn as I go through life.
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
You can clarify the positive
things you want to give to people
Imagine that you have described some of the things that you have been given in your life. You may also have reflected on how you have benefited from being given these things.
If you wish, you may want to consider what you want to give to other people during your time on the planet. What could be the benefits of giving these to people?
Different people give different answers when doing this exercise but sometimes they get a realisation. They realise that the things they want to give to others may mirror the things they have been given.
The positive things that I want
to give to people in my life are:
Lots of encouragement … A loving home … Nourishing food … Positive experiences … Helping them to build on their strengths … The chance to do satisfying work … Practical tools they can use to shape a positive future.
Let’s return to your own life and work. Imagine that you want to clarify the positive contribution you want to make. One approach is to take the following steps. You can aim:
To clarify the positive things you want to give to people during your time on the planet;
To clarify the possible things that may happen as a result of giving these things to people.
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
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