Most of us won’t change the world.

We might change our habits. We might change our families. We may even impact our local town but most of us probably won’t change the world. Our tendency is to focus on impacting the lives we have access to everyday and addressing issues that seem within reach. There is a lot of meaningful change that can happen there with no need to further expand our influence. In fact, there is often unrecognized opportunity to serve, empower and impact others right at our finger tips.

Changing the world for good is a noble ambition. Most millennials were gifted not just with a sense of entitlement but also the hope that each one of them has the capability of doing just that. But changing the world requires more than ambition. It’s a massive self forgetting, altruistic sacrifice that often causes so much pain in your lifetime with only some chance of experiencing the joy of actually seeing the change.

So what kind of person changes the world? A person who gives themselves up for it. A person who loves without limits, both friends and enemies. A person whose mission and purpose is worth more to them than their own individual life. With a focus so strong that distractions are futile and a moment held so dear that procrastinating is unimaginable change can happen.

Why is an entire life the price for change? Because change is painful. Change can cause death. Change can mean growth. Change can create new opportunity. All of these take energy which we cannot just create. We can only give it. Give every ounce of our being. Every waking thought. Every resource invested. Every intention focused on the goal. 

One must not forget that the reward is not for you. It is for the generations who get to live in the sunrise of your success. You may never know that the wake of your existence opened doors, tore down walls and removed limitations and boundaries to previously unimaginable ways of life. 

Most of us won’t change the world but I’m still going to try.

Glad of a Borken Heart

what was hollow

what was hard

what was locked

what was hurting

was shattered and reformed.

then was softened 

then was filled

then was healed

then was poured out

so that others may know God and be known, loved, broken, healed, grown and used.

From darkness and death to light and life with a plan and a purpose and joy through Jesus.

Overjoyed and Under30

Last week I spent 4 days in Boston at the Forbes Under30 Summit. I was honored as a 30 under 30 List Maker this year in the games category.

As soon as I arrived I was immersed in an environment that was primed for networking, inspiration, and conversation. While some sessions were riddled with buzz words, others broke beyond that and shared messages aimed to challenge you to re-think your place in and picture of our world.

To be honest the energy from some of the speakers and attendees made me want to start another business. This is something I haven't considered in over a decade. What planted this seed was the conversations about major issues affecting our world and the strategies people proposed for tackling them. These weren't casual suggestions about what could change, these were well researched, user centered solutions. I felt capable of tackling some of them with the right people, and funding and the conference itself was ripe with those two ingredients.

Amidst the sights and smells of the Macallan Whiskey scented VIP lounge I had the opportunity to meet with entrepreneurs from around the world. It was a much needed reminder of how incredible it feels to be around like minded people. We traded stories about our organization developments and our current corporate struggles. We traded wisdom, business hacks and even recipes! There was a "Yes and" attitude among most who challenged and built on the ideas of others. Each person was open to critiques and questions that would strengthen their enterprises.

The most stirring theme I noticed throughout the conference was how to make impact and how to create a legacy. In every session there seemed to be a constant reaffirmation to live your dream, act, do, learn, try. To take a stand, help others,  believe in something and question why the world is the way it is. With these responsibilities hoisted on to the shoulders of motivated people under 30 something incredible is bound to happen.

I was honored and inspired to have been among this group. I'm more hopeful than ever in the future we'll create and the ways we will change the world together.

And yes I am already registered for the 2018 conference!

Change, the way you love

We're supposed to change. Over time we're supposed to be different. It's a part of knowing you're alive.

I don't want to be who I was 5 years ago and I don't want to be who I am now in 5 years.

I expect myself and others to change. It's a challenge to my compassion and patience to come with an open heart to people I have known and love them as if we have never met, as if I've never been hurt by them and as if they want to be better. I want the way I treat them to reflect my own character and not what I think they "deserve" based on their character.

Sometimes change just seems to happen and other times it comes only through pain or persistence. Today I choose to change the way I love, the reason I love, and to remove all barriers and boundaries that have restricted the love I will give at no cost.

Astronaut

Sometimes I write but now I also do pictures.

DO SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL

Beauty is more than just visual aesthetics! There can also be beautiful words, sounds and feelings but today I am here to talk to you about beautiful actions.

Today I woke up, rummaged through my clothes, and jumped in the shower. In there I was surrounded by warmth, fresh scents and the idea that I was completely alone. It was just me, every inch, every pound, and every imperfection. When I hopped out I cleared my foggy mirror, looked at my flushed face and started thinking about the day ahead.

I thought about the people I would encounter, the food I would get to eat, and the changes I would get to live out and advocate for. When I looked into my eyes I saw beauty beyond the physical bounds of my being. I felt beautiful because I get to do beautiful things.

I get to impact millions of lives with the choices I make and not just because I work at Microsoft. It's because I am passionate about participating in other people lives and making my voice (and the voices of others) heard.

The world is not going to change itself. Go out there, in your everyday life, and say something, make something, do something beautiful.

Passion is Not Enough

Passion. This word is thrown around, fabled as the key to success, and never explained. My mantra, 'Find your passion, live your dream' is not just an empty slogan. It is a guiding principle to my goal of changing the world one life at at time.

The idea of passion as a requirement for success is not what I disagree with. I am bothered by the lack of understanding of the depth of the term 'passion' and the lack of personal ownership in a persons own definition of success. 

Passion encompasses many things, most notably:

• Discipline - to do or not to do
• Desire - to want to do
• Motivation - a reason to do 
• Focus - to keep doing
• and Skill - to do well

This is why it a such misleading term.

Passion is an invisible fuel you can't buy, borrow, or steal. I think passion is raw and natural but like any growing thing it can be cultivated to produce a better yield. Passion, like energy, can be stifled but not destroyed. It can be restrained or hindered but not depleted. Passion, like love, is eternal but can hibernate. It can retreat in times of comfort or stress. It can dwindle malnourished or overwhelm when enticed. If you have captured your passion treat it as a beloved guest in your life and not as an enslaved work man. 

I challenge you to question the value of your life and your definition of success. I dare you to become the person you were meant to be by finding your passion and defining your dreams. Take the courage to decide what your life is about and not just what you will do any given day. Live intentionally and aim to not waste any of the moments you have been blessed with. 

I won't challenge you to do something that I haven't already done myself. I seek to know God and for Him and his love to be known to all. I desire to love without limits just as I have been. This is the purpose of my life. Luckily, this life is full of an infinite number of ways for me to live this everyday. This includes my work at Microsoft and my adventures with EDEN BodyWorks.

So, what are you doing and what are you going to do next? I can't wait to hear about it in the comments below!

I am & I am not

I am not ambitious 

I am not concerned with financial gain

I am focused

I am a person who knows what kind of life they want to live

I am not a prize to be won

I am not an achievement be sought after 

I am an experience 

I am an opportunity to grow in patience and in character 

I am not done learning 

I am not going to be the same person in 5 years

I am tender hearted 

I am too hard on myself 

I am not a fan of crowds 

I am not afraid of failing 

I am good at public speaking 

I am an introvert 

I am not perfect 

I am not always the best version of myself 

I am a Christian 

I am trying to be better

Life Thus far

A life well lived full of time well wasted

The fruits of my labor, how sweet they have tasted

The challenge, the mission, the struggle, the strife

The success, the progress, the triumph, the life

Look, look, look for the good

Smile in the moments you don't think you should

Speak warm like sunshine, as rhythmic as rain

Fall, get back up, get back up once again

Give, give, give from your heart

Be a wise leader or just play your part

Elevate others as mentor or friend

Fall, get back up, get back up once again

A life brand new, a future untainted 

Equipped with a brush and prepared to go paint it

The mystery, the wonder, the unknown, the length

The planning, the passion, the focus, the strength 

Don't Say I Never Told You: Time Management

One day I realized that if I didn't start making a plan for the day that I was going to waste it. First the day, then the month and eventually my life.

As a child I had seen a life well lived change many others. This is the life I wanted for me. 

But my mind is too wild. It just jumps from task to task as I remember what needs to be done, what must be done, and what is to be avoided. 

It may seem weird carve out time for spontaneity, for freedom of choice or for rest but when your brain moves at a million miles a minute you have to set boundaries in order to be functional.

I have moved from a series of alarms with sounds associated with different behaviors (wake up, eat, work, play, sleep) to a check list of things where I have options to choose what I want to do that day. 

It's not about finishing the whole list it's about committing to progress without feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of things it takes to survive as a human and also to have the life I want.

I can't do it all and I try really hard not to punish myself for that. In moments of weakness I go dark and spiral into a period of neglect. No more chores, no food, no email, just walks and naps and water.

 It's far from the healthiest thing but I can proudly say that this habit is dying. I have allowed myself to be loved, to be cared for and to be supported. I am reminded that my strength is not my own and that all I have to do is choose one thing and start.

At 25 I still wonder who I'm supposed to be. I feel responsible and accountable to people I don't know but can influence. I feel a heavy weight and the fire of passion for work meant for something.

I can't control most things. I've almost completely abandoned control in favor of wisdom. I don't need to micromanage every minute of my day. I just need to have clear desires, priorities and motivation so I can make a wise choice when the time comes to choose how I will spend my time. 

In the words of the Flaming Lips, "all we have is now, all we'll ever have is now".