Set Out to Make A Difference

#makeadifference #purpose #meaning #leadership

Set out to make a difference

My son and I were recently talking in the car (which is the best place to talk to teen boys by the way – you can have whole conversations while side by side so as not to actually have any eye contact and can get a chance to hear their thoughts and ideas)… anyway we were talking about YouTube stars and how they make money for basically just hanging out filming their lives or themselves playing video games.

Like a lot of kids his age, he is drawn to the idea of basically earning money for doing nothing. It’s got its appeal I suppose. But I used the opportunity (or teachable moment as we would say in the early childhood education field) to say how it might be amusing for a little while, but that I would rather do something that has meaning and purpose. He mentioned that some of these people make a lot of money but he also sort of agreed because he said it would get boring to just play video games over and over for hours and hours or just do nothing (not being bored is one kind of motivator I guess...).

What does a life of purpose mean to teens and young adults? It will be interesting to see what kinds of purposeful and meaningful things they take on. Like every generation, there are many issues to tackle and problems to solve. There is also a lot to improve, create, and build. I’m also curious what leaders will emerge and what leadership they will provide and what goals they will work for.

What does leadership mean to younger generations? Who do they think of as leaders and what do they think leaders do? What inspires or motivates leaders of their generation? And how do we instill a sense of purpose and a drive or search for meaning in the generations coming up? What knowledge or skills do we teach to inspire younger people to work for change?

I believe great leaders don’t set out to be leaders, they set out to make a difference. They are motivated by a cause bigger than themselves and strive to work for change. The key is to be moved by something that pulls at your heart or fills you with a sense of what is right and then strive to make things better somehow.

Find those things in your life that give you a sense of a greater purpose. Do things that give you meaning and that make a difference in the world. They don’t have to be big things. As I’ve often told students in my classes, you can always strive to change your little corner of the world. We can all have purpose and meaning in our lives and make a difference. So what will you do?

Fiona hiking in Alta, Utah 2017