How brave are you?

Read on, and you will understand why I am asking this question.

This morning I was reading Peter Drucker – a famous management consultant who often worked in Japan - and a sentence in his book jumped out at me as quite profound. He wrote:

"Individual self-development in large measure depends on the focus on contributions."

How you can contribute to Society is a tricky question.

Obviously, anyone in a job, at a university, with a family, is contributing. In fact, being a member of our society requires that you contribute in some way.

Therefore, the question is not “if” you contribute, the question is “how” you contribute?

How could you re-define your current “contribution”?

When you are brave you can say: I want a life that makes a significant contribution. I want to help my Self and help others live a happier, more fulfilling life. According to Drucker – this bravery will cause you to accelerate your own self-development!

I agree. Do you?

When you are stuck with the same problems year after year – what do you do? You discover how you can contribute. Why? Because…

Your self-development will grow in direct proportion to the contribution you make.

However, the only way to help others is by first leaning how to help your Self.

I understand this very well, because I experienced it…

I was in a difficult situation back in 2004. At that time, BodyChance was called “Alexander Teaching Associates” or ATA and we were not doing very well. My trainees were slowly graduating, and there were few new trainees joining.

My ATA school was shrinking – along with my income and ability to support my two young daughters. I was getting worried, even desperate. I reached out and looked for support. I talked to business consultants, other teachers – anyone who could help me.

What they told me was shocking. I kept thinking:

“But I can’t do that! That’s not who I am.”

It didn’t matter – to survive, I had to change my identity of me.

I had to change my belief in what I thought was possible for me to do.

I discovered that I could not continue thinking and behaving the way I did, because if I did, then my life would just continue going in the direction it was already going.

This was unacceptable.

My personal crisis triggered an intense period of self-development. This continues to this very day, although I am much happier now. In the beginning I had many lonely nights in bed – looking up in the dark, awake, feeling terror. Unable to sleep, I kept wondering how I could survive? Was I really a failure in life? It wasn’t pretty, and yet it led me to happiness, and ultimately more satisfaction and success.

I learnt: happiness is not the outcome of success. Success is the outcome of happiness.

And happiness results from self-development.

And self-development is driven by contribution.

Therefore, focus on your contribution first – regardless of how dark you feel. Happiness comes as a result of contributing more of your abilities. Isn’t it true that you have always secretly suspected you could more than you are doing now? Well, just begin by imagining that you can. Imagine your Self doing the extraordinary. Start believing it.

Life is full of ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

They are the brave ones: brave in withholding judgment on who are, what you can do and what life means for you. When you have decided these things, aren’t you already stuck?

How do you really know the limit of what you can contribute to the world?

It’s largely what you contribute that defines you. And your being changes as a result, because your identity starts to shift…

Confidence, assurance and hope are the offspring of asking more of your Self.

This is what Drucker was saying in his elegant sentence.

This is what so inspired me to write this blog!

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One of the new identities I took on was: ”I am a small business owner” I realized, every teacher in a sole practise is the same. ATSuccess will be offering a series of free lessons on how you can start getting serious about being a “small biz owner” and make your business one that can easily support you.

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