Decide What To Be

Day 39 – We’ve talked briefly about lifestyle design, a term used to describe the plan you create for your life. I’m big on planning because without goals, we seem to just float endlessly from task to task without any real direction. How can you drive a car without knowing your end destination? How can you cook a recipe without knowing the end product you will eat?

Goals are also important in life. Everyday I work from a to-do list. Our design and development team operates from a calendar with weekly and monthly goals. Our campaign management and fundraising teams even operate from quarterly lists.

While many of us set professional goals, we do not seem to set personal goals. And we certainly do not set yearly or lifetime goals.

Some people create “bucket lists,” things they want to do before they die. That’s cool and all, but life is much more than things we do. More important than the things we do is the person we are. Before we answer the question “what do I want to do” we must first ask, “What do I want to be?”

I don’t mean professionally. While there are many people like me who find extreme pleasure from work, there are bigger things that make you who you are.

Are you spiritual?

Are you a family man?

Are you creative?

Are you an explorer?

Are you charitable?

What exactly are you? What do you want to be?

Those are the questions you must find answers too. Once you find out who you are and what you want to be, you can move on to the action items you should do.

To help you, I’ll lay out some of my goals:

I want to be: Cultural and well traveled. I want to see the world.

I am: Getting there, but there is still so much to see.

This year I will:

1. Travel to Amsterdam, London and Dublin.
2. Travel to China
3. Travel to the Dominican Republic
4. Spend more time in San Francisco
5. Travel more within the US

In my life, I will:

1. Set foot on every continent
2. Be adventurous and travel to non-safe places. There’s a difference between non-safe and unsafe, btw.
3. Visit third-world villages

I want to be: An innovator.

I am: Taking risks and making moves.

This year I will:

1. Move beyond SC and take on more out-of-state online clients.
2. Grow our social marketing department
3. Grow our development department
4. Grow WinWithWP.com
5. Grow fundraiser7.com
6. Stop taking SC general consulting clients
7. Double the size of our staff

In my life, I will:

1. Have enough money to do what I want to do and when I want to do it.
2. Change the game.
3. Leave great things for my children.

I want to be: Spiritual.

I am: A fake Christian. I talk the talk but do not walk the walk as I should.

This year I will:

1. Read the Bible daily
2. Pray twice a day (and I don’t mean the recited prayers over food)
3. Attend Church every Sunday that I’m in town.
4. Watch the sermon every week I’m not in town.
5. Become more involved in Sunday school.
6. Get involved in a men’s group to find accountability buddies.
7. Quit cursing.
8. Tithe more.
9. Read every CS Lewis apologethic.
10. Find a charity and get my entire company involved.

In my life, I will:

1. Know God.
2. Go to Heaven (more afterlife, but you get it).
3. Lead others to Christ.
4. Be an example for others.
5. Help those less fortunate than myself.

These are just three of many things I want to be. The “bucket list” will change, but I don’t see these bigger items changing. In the sidebar of this blog you will see a quote from The Avett Brothers “decide what to be and go be it.” It’s not “decide what to do and go do it.”

Doing something is easy. Being something is what’s hard.

What are you?
What do you want to be?
What will you do this year to be that person?
What will you do in your life to be that person?

Answer those questions and you’ll be off to a rockin’ start.