What Difference Are You Making?

What difference do you plan to make this year? What would happen if your customers were interested not only in the service you provide but also, and maybe more significantly, in the value you represent to the world? What if your children were asking you to become more aware of the impact your choices were having in the world? It would seem that we are now living in that reality. Increasingly, we are becoming more aware as people populating this world. We seem to be more aware and concerned about waste and war. We seem to be more aware of the responsibility we have in the personal choices we make. What we buy, and from whom, is now a much bigger deal. In his book, Saving the World at Work, Tim Sanders suggests that we are now living in the "responsibility revolution". His suggestion is that we are now living in a time where people are actually taking their responsibility as world citizens seriously and they are seeking to connect with people who are like minded. So, how does that reality effect you?

To begin with, if you share this revolutionary sense of responsibility, it causes you to live each day with a new sense of passion and purpose. You are leading a parade each day. You are trying to bring an influence to your world that will make a difference. Making responsible choices is not easy. In fact, it is not natural. It has to be done on purpose. It will require more conscious response and less emotional reaction. So, each day brings new opportunities and with them new challenges. Every day becomes an important day to live both for the sake of the present and the future.

It also impacts the choices you make about the people you are going to choose as your team. I believe team involves anyone you depend upon for the success you want to achieve. So, where you work and with whom you work takes on new relevance. Your desire to make everyone on your team more successful becomes far more meaningful. You need them. They need you. The world needs the difference you are making. It is not just a job. It is not just a company. It is your commitment to life. It is your mission.

Finally, it greatly influences where, and with whom, you do business. It influences how you will spend your money because now it involves more than just you. In fact, each expenditure you make becomes an investment of sorts. It is an investment that has impact. We make purchasing choices that represent a vote for the causes and the companies we believe in and want to support.

So, join the revolution! Choose to make this year a purposed and powerful year . Take your place as a leader in your world. Make each day your own personal creation and contribution. Then, enjoy the sense of peace and significance that comes your way. Listen closely because you may just hear the applause of the world.