“What do you have a burning desire to change in the world?”
This was a question posed last week in a workshop I participated in.
What came to me was:
If you want to change the world, start with yourself.
Gandhi
Whatever we seek to change external to ourselves is and will always be greatly impacted by how we show up, hence my instinctive answer to that question went directly to the power of always having the humility and openness as well as the hunger and bravery to always week to learn, grow, change, no matter where we are in life.
As I reflect, a simple story. Last week two of us were driving along and, within five minutes, we saw people in cars in front of us throw drink containers out of the window into the road. We paused and thought, both of us parents, “none of our children would ever dream of behaving in that way”.
At that moment I felt, as I often do, that one thing I am most proud to have contributed to the world is the upbringing of my sons. Whatever they do, how they behave, how they show up, how they learn and grow as they move through life, these will have profound impacts on their work and those they interact with throughout their lives.
My role is less involved now that they are young adults, so it is more about how I show up with and for them than anything I teach. It is about the type of behaviours, beliefs and values I model.
If you want to change the world, start with yourself