In my aimless pre-going-to-bed surfing, I stumbled over this gem: "A Brief Guide to World Domination" by Chris Guillebeau. Basically, it gives you some tips and tricks on how to 'live an unconventional life' and do something that really matters. While, you know, many of these motivational speeches or posters are sometimes a little idealistic, I do think it's important to refocus your attention and efforts sometimes on the bigger picture. In his guide, Chris asks two basic questions: "What do you really want to get out of life?" and "What can you offer the world that no-one else can?" and then stresses that, if you really put your energy into it, it is very possible that you can achieve your goal. If you consider the amount of time you spend with mindless tasks, I think he has a point. In talking about what you need in order to succeed, he talks about passion, supporters, the usual... until he mentions a very valuable point:
"Expertise: When you take the time to become a real expert in something highly specialized that really adds value to the world, the people you help will start looking to you for answers about seemingly unrelated topics. It’s always better to start highly focused and then work outwards than to begin with a broad, unspecific mandate."
In a way, this point validated my current path for me. I am so caught up in studies at the moment that I sometimes feel guilty not volunteering, working, gaining experience or adding value one way or another - but seeing this point in time as an investment in my future contribution (which form that will eventually take..) makes me feel better about hitting the books.
Because, as Martin Luther King Jr. so aptly said,
“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”
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| Sometimes I also leave my room and go on awesome walks, I swear! |
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