Motivation Monday #15

[xeroc]

I couldn't help but have you in mind while putting this together!! The more we want to contribute, the harder we work, the longer the to-do lists, the more issues we see unresolved, the more stress and guilt may build up. The more we want to contribute and be self-less, the more important it is to take care of ourselves and take time to celebrate our own completions.

I totally know what you are talking about!!

[CLains]

!!

I couldn't help but have you in mind while putting this together!! The more we want to contribute, the harder we work, the longer the to-do lists, the more issues we see unresolved, the more stress and guilt may build up. The more we want to contribute and be self-less, the more important it is to take care of ourselves and take time to celebrate our own completions.

[xeroc]

!!

[CLains]

CONTRIBUTION

“We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give.” Winston Churchill

At our deepest depths rises a drive to contribute. We want to know that we’ve given of ourselves and played a significant part in shaping the world around us.

When we feel as though we’re contributing to the world, we gain a profound sense of meaning and purpose. In fact, contribution can be the main source of meaning and purpose in our lives. If we’ve contributed something significant to the world, we feel that our time here was meaningful, that we’re making a difference, that it matters.

We can think of contribution as giving something to the world, and that in turn as either giving of ourselves, or giving to something. But first, lets give ourselves some credit:

Activator #1 Giving Credit

Contribution often brings up a lot of guilt. We generally feel that we don’t contribute enough to our families, friends, colleagues, and greater community. This is especially true in today’s überbusy and connected world, where we don’t have time to address many pressing issues and yet are constantly reminded of them.

Take some time to complete the following sentences, and from now on, everytime you finish a project or get a compliment for a contribution you’ve made to the world, take a moment to let it all in.

• The ways i’ve contributed to and made a difference in my family’s life this past year include ...
• When I think of my best friends, I know I’ve made an impact in their lives in these ways: …
  
• A creative project I’ve finished in the past few years that I never really gave myself credit for was…
• If I started giving myself more credit for the ways I really do give and contribute in this world, my life would change in these ways: ...
  

It’s time you finally allow yourself to sense the impact and contributions you’ve made in the world. You have made a difference in this world, regardless of whether it’s as large or lasting as you would hope.

Activator #2 Giving Of

By being ourselves and giving the best of ourselves to everything we do, we exert our highest and strongest selves, and doing that alone can make us feel that we are contributing. Forming our energies in a way that matters alone is a difference that makes a difference.

For instance, consider the singers, dancers, writers, designers, and so on - who may not be creating with an eye toward giving to anything in particular but, rather, with the intention of living their truth and following their own creative expression. Perhaps the singer may sell millions of copies of her album and contribute to the musical genre, or perhaps not - the intention was simply to give of oneself creatively and express truthfully.

Activator #3 Giving To

Another kind of giving is the variety of giving to others and broader causes outside ourselves with the direct intention of making an impact. You can give your time, energy, effort, resources, skills, connections, attention, and love to your company, your family, your favorite nonprofit.

In giving to we should take care to find the endeavors that resonate with our own motivation and health, focusing on the things we find deeply meaningful, creative, novel, challenging, and that connects us socially. When we give to causes that also helps satisfy our deepest human drives, we can sustain the effort and our whole being will conspire to push for greater and greater levels of contribution.