Top Question: What Are We Supposed To Do?
I feel the pressure of a great shift. Things are messy. The world seems unstable and dark. Going about my business while the world changes drastically around me feels more and more surreal. The questions are building. As the next chapter of this story slowly unfolds, I often wonder 'What are we supposed to do? What's our role in all of this? What difference can one person or one little group make?'
The Big Problem
I'm convinced that we are in a unique window of time. I'm confident that the world is going through a change unlike anything we've seen in modern history. I believe that if you're on this planet right now, you have a role to play on the global transition team. There is no doubt in my mind that the individual, the small groups of united souls, can and will make all the difference.
I'm convinced that the biggest thing you can do for our future is to start believing you play an important role in it.
“The big problem is that people don’t believe a revolution is possible and it is not possible precisely because they do not believe it is possible” Theodore Kaczynski
You might not know what to do, you might not even know who you are yet. That's ok, no one really does right now. Not having the answers or a perfect roadmap is no excuse to skip the hardest part: do you believe that you have an important role to play?
If the only thing that changed from any of our interactions is that you are now convinced of this one thing, despite all the efforts made to persuade you otherwise, I'd consider it a mission accomplished. That's part of my Game Changers agenda.
We need enough of us to remember who we are and to know we are here for this exact time. What we think, believe, and act out in our lives absolutely matters.
Here's why:
If you believe your role is important, then you will figure out how to play your part. If you know you're here at this time for a specific purpose, then you will push yourself to go through whatever process it takes to accomplish it. If you ever catch on to how much it matters that you remember who you are, then you won't be able to give up.
We can move the needle in the right direction with this one thing.
The Audacity to Believe
What can one person do right now? What are any of us supposed to do in the face of so much change?
The truth is that there are lots of things to do right now. They might not be what you think and none of them are easy. But when you are convinced your contribution matters, you start making it a priority to play your part. And when I say it's not easy, I don't mean special ops missions or political activism or monk-like existence. I'm talking about the inner world 'not easy'; the things you have the option to do.
I'm talking about the absolute strength it requires to know your role matters in a world full of narratives that say you don't unless you have XYZ- money, fame, success, power, bla bla bla.
I'm talking about the deep courage to confidently move forward even when you don't know the way.
I'm talking about the boldness to step out into the unknown again and again, with no guarantees of prizes or immediate success.
The change and uncertainty of these years can make us shrink back into fear, into hiding, into forgetting that we are here for these exact times.
If enough of us remember who we are, then enough of us will do what it takes to figure out what to do.
Take Hope, Nothing Is What It Seems
Rumi tells the story of a man eating apples in the shade of a tree until he falls asleep. A ways off, a Wise Teacher is riding by and notices that a poisonous snake has crawled into the sleeping man's mouth. The Teacher rides over as quickly as possible and upon reaching him, begins to beat him and chase him on his horse.
The man who was sleeping cries out repeatedly, asking what he's done to deserve this; crying, sweating, pleading, the man is pushed to run longer and harder until he finally falls down, pukes, and sees the snake come out of his mouth.
Immediately the man who was chased begins to cry tears of gratitude. He instantly understands why the Wise Teacher acted in this way. He praised the Teacher for saving his life. The teacher explained how difficult it was to push the man to keep going. If the man knew the poisonous snake was inside of him, he may have frozen in fear. There was no time to waste with explanations, every moment mattered.
Courage, Hope & Facing the Pain
I'd like to think that we as a world are kind of like the guy who was eating apples and accidentally swallowed a very poisonous snake. Now we're going through our metaphorical version of 'being chased wildly and beat down by a stranger on a horse until we throw up all the bad stuff'.
Whatever the metaphor or story we believe, the process is the same. The process we're in as a group, as potential Game Changers, requires the courage to believe our role matters, the hope to keep going even when the way isn't clear, and the ability to face the pain of being beat by a stranger until we throw up.
The practicalities of what to do in our businesses, with our families, in our own craft or calling or community- those details will become clear. Don't let the lack of answers stop you from being convinced that your role still matters.
"As you start to walk on the way, the way appears". Rumi
The 'way' begins with each of us arriving at the conviction that we do indeed have a part to play; and remember, it's never what it seems.
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world: indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
— Margaret Mead
You're invited to join me on the upcoming podcast. I've asked the thinkers, storytellers, and those who dedicate their life's work to asking big questions to delve into the process of answering these three big ones for all of us:
And What's Our Role in the Story?
So far each guest has quite a few answers to the question "What can we do right now? What's our role in all of this?" Join me for this low-budget, hole-in-wall production that will dazzle you with some unexpected perspectives.