Make your life a mission, not an intermission! – Arnold H. Glasgow also seen spelled as Glasow
What does that mean?
If someone were to demand to know what you life’s mission was, could you tell them? Right now, I’d be hard pressed, although I have the usual list of roles I fulfill and tasks I do which define my existence. But that’s not quite the same.
Some people spend their life waiting, doing a little here, a little there, but never doing much (the intermission referenced in the quote, by my reckoning). Others are feverishly running around, doing busy-work, without an overarching plan or mission to guide them (me, most of the time). Others, a rare few in my observation, are on a mission. They know what they want to do and they are doing things they think will move their mission along.
The first group is not of much interest to anyone. The second group needs some introspection and planning, and the third, that’s where we want to be, isn’t it? To which of the groups above do you most regularly fall?
Why is being on a mission important?
Being on a mission – sounds like the start to a movie, doesn’t it? The line has been used in everything from the Blues Brothers to the Mission Impossible franchise, and many movies in-between. Being on a mission is having a goal that is an unquenchable desire. But one must be careful what one takes on as a mission.
Name any great tyrant in history, and you have a person with a mission. From Hitler to Idi Amin, they had a mission. Usually it was amassing personal power, wealth and prestige, cloaked in claim that they were helping the common folk achieve those same things.
Many on the fringes of religion suffer from the same kind of mission, and usually fare no better. From Rev Jim Jones to Marshall Applewhite, the trail of carnage and suffering is astounding.
I started with the scary side of missions to make sure that you harness your passion and set your goals in a proper manner. As I have mentioned before, Mother Teresa was also a person with a mission. So was General Dwight D Eisenhower. While on opposite sides of the war/peace debate, both of their missions were the passion of their lives, an unquenchable desire to achieve a goal.
These are the kinds of passionate and motivated people who make a difference in the world, and do so on an international scale. Being on a mission doesn’t have to be quite that big, though. There are plenty of people on a mission, just on smaller scales. Some fight corruption, some fight pollution, some fight crime (not Batman, but neighborhood watches, the Guardian Angles and similar groups), others fight hunger through dozens of different organizations both national and local.
Where can I apply this in my life?
I have covered passion and exceptionalism , both the definition of and exercises in finding them, in prior posts. Feel free to follow the links and examine some of my ideas on those topics. However, this post is about defining a mission. I will presume you have a plan for becoming exceptional at what you are going to do. I also presume you know what your passion is.
Now for the mission. You have a passion. You want to do something and really, absolutely have to do something about it. You also have some idea on how to get more skilled at whatever you are going to be doing. Now, to tie it all together.
Time for the paper, the writing and the brainstorm. Run through what you want to achieve, and write down what the major steps are. Now, time to use your intelligence (you don’t want to reinvent the wheel, do you?). What of those steps are already in place? Perhaps all of them are, and all you need to do is help coordinate? Who knows, but you’re going to find out! Write it down and look into it.
If you want to feed the hungry, you need to decide where you will do it. Is there a particular group you are trying to reach? What services are presently available? You may find that there are plenty of services, but that there is a lack of methods to get people and food together. Can you be passionate about driving a glorified catering truck through the suburbs, delivering food to the elderly and to shut-ins? That’s what my mom does as part of Meals On Wheels. And it helps to feed people who otherwise might not eat as often or as well as they should.
How did your brainstorming session go? Did you find a niche, or are things already pretty well covered? Do you have to be a pioneer, or do you feel comfortable doing what you are passionate about within the structure of an existing organization? I have spoken about my passion for working with my hands, and with wood in particular. I also like the thought of helping with housing for the poor or disadvantaged. That led me to working with Habitat for Humanity for a while. I would never be able to rehab or build a house by myself, so working with an established organization was a good match for me.
Whatever path your mission takes you on, take some time to plan it out. Passionate people have plenty of thrust, but can sometimes be lacking in vector. That’s geek speak for someone who has tons of energy, but is having trouble directing it in a coherent manner. Sometimes that takes the form of running helter-skelter from one aspect of a project to another, and other times it might take the form of laser sharp focus on one portion while ignoring another portion. Having a plan, and deadlines, help keep you focused on what is important.
If you’re going to be part of a larger organization, be sure to let them know what you like doing best and what you do the best. You will still probably have enough to do to keep you running non-stop, as most groups are short handed. But you’ll be busy doing something you feel very passionate about, and you’re on a mission.
From: Twitter, @AR_Foundation
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/arnoldhgl144778.html
