Design Yourself

Design Yourself

It's not uncommon for everyone to hit a point in life where they are in search for more meaning. In fact, it's not uncommon for people to have that feeling on many occasions throughout life. When these moments occur, it leads some people down a path of depressing thoughts like "woe is me." For others, it's a spark that ignites a major life change or new adventure. In either case, people will come back around to searching for meaning because they haven't properly designed who they want to be in life.

In our culture where competition is a part of DNA we are all striving to be the best, but not everyone can be on top. To lay claim that you are the best at something is to always have to convince others they are not. Instead, what if we worked at being our own self, to be different, to be the best version of who God made us to be. It's not so much that we need meaning in our lives, because as creations made in God's image, our meaning is inherent. Rather, it's more about living uniquely because uniquely is how you were made.

Here's an excerpt from the book Play Bigger by Ramadan, Lochhead,  Peterson, and Maney.
"Designing yourself might involve developing a personal set of beliefs and a way of conducting your life that fits with what you do and the category you address. Design the
"product" - that , your offering to the world - by developing your skills. And design the space around you so it fits your capabilities but also challenges you."

If you can figure out your personal category and how you make it unique, meaning and success will come. Spend time designing yourself.

Ramadan, Al. Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers, and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets. New York: HarperBusiness, 2016. 218. Print.

Meaning in Every Moment




Theology's Relevance

N.T. Wright opens a chapter in his book, After You Believe: Why Christian Character Matters with the following story.

"I once had a student, studying theology, who spent his whole summer vacation working in a sub-Saharan African country. When he came back, the head of the college asked him what he wanted to do when he graduated. He replied that he was hoping to work in international development, bring help and wisdom to the poorest parts of the globe. The head of the college at once asked him why, in that case, he was studying theology rather than politics and/or economics.

The student didn't miss a beat. 'Because theology is much more relevant,' he replied."

May you find meaning and purpose in your work that is of something greater.