One of my favorite quotes of all time is from John Wesley…
“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”
A few years back I had the opportunity to listen to Marc Benioff (Salesforce CEO) share a few of his basic life thoughts. One thing he said still stands out to me…
‘We should not measure our success by what we earn and collect for ourselves, but instead, we should measure our success by how much we can help other people.’ (rough memory, not actual quote)
PURPOSE has an amazing capacity to change the value of what we do.
Simple work that creates resources to support our family, or resources to serve, to contribute, give to charity, (or whatever your passion for good), is no longer just simple work. That work becomes the foundation upon which you can build powerful legacy of service and doing good. Selfish becomes selfless. And a selfless version of you is the best version of you.
A few years back at my father-in-law’s funeral, story after story surfaced about his nearly endless generosity. I was already aware of a few of these stories, but most were never talked about. Doing good to look good on Instagram or the news isn’t really doing good. It’s doing marketing. Interestingly, the same act of kindness with a marketing motive takes the opportunity to share a selfless act and redirects the focus back on you and your selfish motives.
Because of that, I suggest adding a few more words to John Wesley’s classic poem.
“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” as quietly as you can.
I strongly suspect that right now. TODAY. If you’re looking. Your path will cross with someone who needs some help or kindness that you are uniquely able to give. Do it. It won’t take long before you can easily see the needs and you will begin to plan your day. You may carry an extra sandwich knowing you’ll meet someone who’s hungry. You may take that extra blanket or coat with you tomorrow knowing you’ll see someone who is cold. You may buy a bag of groceries for that family who just lost their work…
You get the idea. The means, the ways and the places are nearly endless.
Do it! Be the best version of yourself. SELFLESS