Top 10 Things To Do That Can Change the World

I thought it was about time I create a list of the things that people can do to make the world a better place. This is my list and there are certainly other ways that I will not mention but that could easily be included. I would love to hear what you think should be included on this list.

1. Seek first to understand before being understood.
This one is a no brainer. We live in a world where we expect everyone to see our point of view and unfortunately that just doesn't work. If you want people to hear your point of view then listen to someone else's first. More importantly listen with an open mind and leave your judgement's at home. What is often forgotten is that there are at least '7 different truths' to every question, every situation, and every event. Your viewpoint makes all the difference and it is important to remember that yours is not the only way to look at the answer. Look at the world through another persons eyes and you might learn something both new and beautiful.

2. Start a conversation with a stranger.
Awkward? Maybe. Incredible experience? Definitely. There are exceptions of course, like when the stranger looks at you like you are crazy, or they have nothing to say. But I have an example. This past holiday season I was at the mall and sat down for lunch. It was extremely busy and seats were a luxury. I happened to have an empty seat across from me at my table and noticed a lady looking for a place to sit. I invited her to take a seat and I struck up a conversation. Turns out she was doing jury duty on a rather interesting case, and while she couldn't fill me in on the details she was able to tell me enough that the story was one I will remember. She also gave me some great tips for presents for my mom and sister, AND wished me a merry Christmas. The point, however, was that it was an opportunity to learn something new and we are constantly passing up these opportunities for fear of awkwardness. You never know who you might meet out of sheer accident and if you believe in Karma then I guarantee it will come right back to you.

3. Make an educated donation.
In this day in age it is not enough just to make a donation. You need to know what and who your donation is going to. There are many methods to make your donation or to do the research (many of which I have mentioned over the last 4 months). The important thing about making a donation isn't the money but that you make the effort to put it in the right place. Your values are of as much importance when making a donation as the actual amount. While millions of people give to cancer this doesn't mean it is the best place to put your money (it also doesn't mean it isn't). There are too many valuable causes and far too many non-valuable ones. Take the time to research your cause and you will find that you feel far better about the donation than you normally would.

4. Give your time to your local community organization.
This is an opportunity to do several things. You will have an opportunity to help out an organization that needs the help and skills that you bring to the table. (It is important that you provide your help on a constant basis like once every other week, once a month, or more. Organizations can become taxed by dealing with a nomadic group of volunteers but if you give your continued time then they wont need to train you or watch over you over time.) You will also be able to learn about the problems affecting your community, which may at first not be so apparent. (You would be entirely surprised to see the rate of homelessness or poverty in your community when you give your time to a soup kitchen or shelter.) You will find yourself increasingly appreciative of what you have in life. (While this may sound bad, the truth is we tend to get far too caught up in our own lives and when we are confronted with those who are worse off then we tend to see the value in our own lives a little more.) Finally, you will meet with and work alongside some people in your community you would not normally have a chance to or even think to get to know. (Some of the best people, and the ones I have learned the most from, have come during a volunteer experience. Getting outside your comfort zone and meeting people with different perspectives will only help you to see the world in new ways.)

5. Read a book a month.
Any book will do, but I would suggest something of the non-fiction variety if for nothing else than it will be an opportunity to learn something new and real. Fiction books will also do, so don't be at all scared to read one of those as well. Books have a funny way of helping you expand both your mind and horizons. A nice side effect is an increased vocabulary, and while I am not a particularly good example, your grammar is likely to improve as well. There are all kinds of books about world issues, and biographies of people who have walked the path that we too want to take.

6. Find a new quote every day or week and put it on your bathroom mirror.
The quote should represent something internal to you and specific to how you feel in the moment or would like to feel. Inspiration abounds in the words of others and it can make your day to read it in the morning before you leave for work or school and get you inspired to take on the world.

7. Write down your dreams.
Everyone has dreams. Very few people follow them. Every day you neglect them your cynicism takes a greater hold on your life. Not following our dreams is to avoid our life purpose. There is a reason we dream what we do and it is because that is what will make us happy. You want the world to change then you had better start with yourself and changing how you neglect yourself. Dreams are meant to be achieved, not ignored or chalked up to a casualty of reality. I don't believe for a second that realism needs to exclude idealism. It just means that we have to really try to make our ideal world a reality. Nothing will happen without effort and the first thing to do is write down what you want to put the effort into. Putting it on paper makes it a reality and you are far more likely to pursue what is on paper than what is in your head.

8. Love someone or something.
I wish I could say that everyone will find their true love and that person will love them that way back. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Love is a funny thing because it isn't something you can control. It is important, however, to let yourself love someone or something with all your heart. We are conditioned over time, by being rejected, and getting hurt, to put walls to protect ourselves from the hurt and pain - these same walls, though, prevent us from feeling love. Love is the most powerful, and often times painful, emotion someone can have. I will tell you this, however, when you love someone or something there is nothing else like it in life. It will bring you the highest of highs in life, and even the lowest of lows - but you can't have one without the other. Love will take you where you never expected to go but when you get there you will feel as though you were meant to be there all along. The world needs more people to love, and take down the walls that prevent it from occurring. Rejecting love out of fear is the worlds greatest problem. We put up walls (both metaphorically and in reality) to stop ourselves from connecting and when we take them down we will open up the world to a whole new outlook and a world of new possibilities.

9. Say thank you, sorry, excuse me, pardon, open the door for someone, etc.
It is simple but lacking on so many levels. It used to be that manners were a valued quality and implied good character. While the former still holds true, the reality is that we as a world have collectively lost our manners. I don't know how many times I have witnessed someone bypass their manners for reasons that are so obviously as a result of no one appreciating them. The cool factor seems to be that for those who have manners are the ones who are seen as strange and uncool. Manners are a good thing and meant to be used. They imply that you appreciate someone and that you respect them as a person. They may not be your closest friend and are often times a stranger or someone you may never meet again, but they are human and should be treated as such. The point is that manners are learned and we learn them from people who give us the respect, such as friends, family, or even strangers. The world would be a far better place if people would simply use our manners.

10. Smile.
By far greatest lesson I was ever taught in life was to smile. A smile has the greatest power of any outward display or gesture. It has the ability to brighten anyones day and instantly make the world a better place. It is like a burst of sunshine on even the cloudiest of days. If there was one thing that anyone has the power to do it is smile more. If Everyone smiled could you imagine how much happier everyone would be? There are some people I know that when they smile it just makes my day - I keep reminding them to do it more often (selfishly for sure) because it is the greatest pick-me-up.

Everything on this list is something within your power to begin doing right now. It requires very little resources on your part, just your energy and passion for making the world a better place. While the world could use a few big gestures to make it better, it is the simple and small things that will have the greatest impact. Try them and tell me what you think.

Earth Hour

I was sent this video about Earth Hour which started in Australia and is now spreading all over the world. It can have a huge impact and I implore you to take part. Check out the video.

Imagine - By John Lennon

I wanted to share the words of a visionary after my own heart. This was John Lennon's Ideal World and I think it is a good one.



Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Fear of Failure

If there is one thing that gets me riled up it is the talk of failure. It seems that no matter who I talk to the mention of failure seems to scare people into a frenzy. I can't stand it when people speak as if failure is bad. It is my estimation that very little in the world would get done if people stopped at the thought of failing.

Talk of biting off more than you can chew, or not being ready, or "lets play this safe" - it is all just talk of people who have lost the will to succeed. JFK once stood in front of the world and said, and I am paraphrasing, "We choose to go to the moon. Not because it is easy but because it is hard." The biggest and best things in life happen because someone saw the impossible and made it possible.

I put a quote by Nelson Mandela at the bottom of my email, and have had it there for months, because I think it is my single greatest value. The quote reads, "It always seems impossible until it is done." It is true to the Nth degree.

I hold nothing against the people who play it safe and who heed advice, play the odds, and wait for the stars to align. It isn't for me though and if there is one piece of advice I could give anyone it would be to just go for it. Jump with both feet in and chase a dream. Call it the Maverick mentality (always love to throw in a Top Gun reference), bull headed, or even living with reckless abandon, but I can't wait to fail. Failure for me just represents a stepping stone in the right direction - and it also represents the creation of a path for the next person to succeed. For every success was built on the failure of many before.

If I fail in life it will be because I went for it and it didn't quite work out, it wont be because I just didn't try. That would be real failure. Dreams are meant to be achieved and whoever tells you they can't be is just someone who has been caught up in the trap of mediocrity. I wont go there, I wont join them. I will embrace my failures and enjoy them. The next time you hear someone tell you it can't be done, or it is impossible, tell them, "so what? I guess we should have given up on going to the moon too." Failure is the last thing that should be feared.

Q & A on the Ideal World Book

So I have been able to have a couple of conversations about my idea and a couple of criticisms have been brought up that I would like to address.

1. There isn't one Ideal World, but several based on many factors including geography, ethnicity, language, religion etc.

Rebuttal: There is only ONE WORLD, and I can't begin to speak for all 6.6 billion people that we can't come to a consensus on what that looks like. Yes, we do live in a world divided by our differences; and Yes, the idea of an ideal world is both philosophically opposed to the world we live in and it is currently nothing but a pipe dream. However, the point isn't to highlight why we are all different and why we can never live harmoniously, the point is to find out where we are similar and really to find out what direction that might take us. How we can orient ourselves to not only embrace our likeness with one another but to begin to create the Ideal World through these similarities.

2. It will create conflict, particularly when we can decide who's ideas are good and who's are bad.

Rebuttal: Conflict is always seen as a negative, whereas I tend to think controlled, non-violent conflict can be rather productive. We are looking at a world where wars and arguments are started over differences. How many conflicts start because someone was trying to show how they were similar? Granted, there is potential to start an argument over whos ideas are best, but if its starts a dialogue then it would be a success. I am asking that people look at their world and lives differently then they do now. We make sense of our world by what we are not, and what others are and it is about time we start to think about why we both are and where we want to go. If it starts an argument then all the better. I would rather it happen over an internet connection with words then face-to-face with a gun. Understanding one another sometimes may just take an argument or two, but in the end if something positive comes then it was worth it.

3. It may just become a book of cliches and it wont be empirical enough.

Rebuttal: In a world with very little hope, and a great deal of fear if this book is a cliche and even just one person can look at it and see a better future then that is its purpose. Empirical facts and ideas mean nothing if the person reading them has lost all hope of a better future. Hope brings action, and words can provide hope. When I look to the Millennium Development Goals, which are rather factual (although vague), they don't inspire me to do anything. They don't provide me any hope that the world will look better in the end. Sometimes people just need a message of encouragement and that is this books purpose. It can't be everything to everybody and I welcome anyone who wants to create something that has hard information for people to go ahead and create it - I will be the first to read it.

4. It needs to have ideas for people to do, not just have the vision of a better world but the practical ways to create it.

Rebuttal: I agree, it would be amazing to hear how we can make it come true. The second part of the question is, "...how do we make it so?" This would be the opportunity for people to provide their ideas for making it a reality. I can't control whether people will include this part of the answer, and I certainly can't provide all the answers myself. The book becomes what the community puts into it, and my hope would be that people will put in every effort possible to make it the best they can.

5. How do you get the message to those without an internet connection and how do they participate?

Rebuttal: It is the biggest and hardest reality of this idea that it will not reach 6.6 billion people around the world. I cannot predict how many people will participate but I can do everything in my power to spread the word to those who can hopefully disseminate it to more people, who will pass it along to more people and so on and so forth. I have ideas on how to get it to people but it does not mean that I will be able to control it. I have the passion and ambition to try but it does not mean that I will not fail.

Which brings me to criticism 6. This is a big idea that is likely to fail.

Rebuttal: I may fail but at least I tried. Failure is a stepping stone, it is just a stone on the path to success. I do not fear my chances of success, knowing how small they may be. What I do fear is that it will never be tried. I won't stop until I succeed. It may not happen in a year or even 5 but maybe it will happen in 6 or 10, I have no idea but I am starting now and have every expectation that it will be a success. Dreaming big is the only way to go.

If you have other criticisms or dislike my answers I would appreciate hearing them. Either give me a shout through email or post your comments here for me to take aim at. I will not take anything personally.

First Big Project of 2008

The cat is out of the bag. I have been working on this idea, mainly in my head, for a couple of years now. Over the holidays I finally put it down on paper and had a few friends and family take a look. It is a doozy of an idea and still very flawed but I am excited to see where it leads. I am putting it out there for you readers to give me your honest and critical feedback. If you like it tell me why, if you don't like it tell me why. The more input and perspective I get on this the better as it will allow me to really see the flaws and more importantly how I can possibly fix them. So here goes.

Ideal World Book:

I think we can all agree that the world, in its current incarnation, is not a world that we would call ‘ideal’ (and if you can make a valid argument against this statement, I would love to hear it!). If you are like me, you dream of a world where everyone has access to basic needs, there is equality for all and peace across the globe. However, what does the ideal world really look like? Where a world with a population of 6.6 billion, all have different dreams and aspirations, how can we ever come to a consensus on the question, “What does the ideal world look like and how do we make it so?”

What if we could ask the world to share their vision? Not just politicians and the rich and famous, but everyone. What if we could get men, women, and children of all ages, ethnicities, geographical locations, religions, and sexualities to shape a global, collaborative vision of what an ideal world would look like?

The Ideal World Book is a global community of people looking to shape this vision. The Ideal World Book is the accumulation of thoughts and ideas, of essays and poems, of art and science that shape a vision of an ideal world.

We are at an apex, the tipping point, in both our lifetime and the lifetimes of future generations. If we are going to affect positive change in our own lives and the lives of those to come, then we must make the conscious effort to do so now, here, in this moment. I can’t do it alone; you can’t do it alone. But WE – a community of people with a collaborative goal, a goal with substance and vision – WE together can make it happen.

I don’t have the answer to this important question. I have ideas and passion. You can’t answer the question, but you can provide your insight and assistance. I am asking for your help to shape this vision, to join a community of people who want to voice their opinions, to assist in starting, here and now, to make the ideal world a reality and not just a daydream.

This is a project that I have dreamt of for years, but I need help! I have the passion to make this project happen, but I don’t have all the necessary skills. If you would like to join me in making the Ideal World Book a reality, I would be indebted to you. I have no money to offer, but at the completion of the Book, you would be able to say you were a vital part of creating it – and that is far more valuable than money.

How it Works:

The Ideal World Book will start as a community where people will answer the question, “What does the ideal world look like and how do we make it so?” Members will post their thoughts, ideas, poems, essays, photographs, drawings, and anything else that can be printed, to a website for all to see. The material posted on the website will then be graded by the whole community on a scale of 1-10. The top-rated material that will fit into a 200-page book, along with a chapter crafted by the Ideal World Book committee, a group of global leaders, will then be printed to form the Ideal World Book – a manifesto of an ideal world. From there, we as a community can decide how to start making it happen! At the conclusion of its creation the proceeds from the sale of the book will be put towards further projects that make the Ideal World a reality (the community will decide how this is done). This is the basic idea - it sounds simple but I know it is far more complicated.

The Next Step From You:

Email me with feedback, ideas, what you would like to contribute. Tell me why this could work, tell me why it can’t, what needs to be thought about in order to move forward. I emphasize again that I have the passion to make this happen, but I don’t claim to have all the skills or answers required. In the end I’m not looking for money, (although I certainly don’t want to lose any!), but my goal is to have as many people as possible participate in the creation of this Book. I will measure success not by profit, but by knowing that the vision that comes out of this will be shared by the world over. Let people know about this; start a conversation; invite me to a conversation or a presentation to a group of people; let us start a dialogue and get things moving.

I am on the record now. Dreaming is not a bad thing. Dreaming without taking action is just disappointing. This is my dream, what is yours?

Holidays are Over

It was my first day back to college today. I was completely ready to get back and get moving on the new semester, as well as all the fun things I have planned. Seeing everyone again was a really enjoyable, but a little overwhelming. So much coming all at once: where everyone was, what they did, who they saw - I try to listen but eventually it just gets to be too much for me. Life does that sometimes. It can be completely overwhelming. My example while not nearly as bad as how some people have it was actually quite hard for me. The important thing - and what I did - was to step away and regroup. Our mind, body and spirit can only take so much before it starts to break down. This is the point where we cease to feel balanced and it is important to listen to what our mind and body is saying to us, instead of forcing it. Think of a time when you have felt overwhelmed, what did you do? I would love to hear your answers.