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Together is An Opportunity for Wild Exploration
Healthy environments promote the flourishing of all of life. But many of the ones that we have created (and are breaking apart right now) have a long way to go when it comes to working together on a shared vision. I can tell you from firsthand experience that when you are on a purposeful trek, it is a blessing to be with people who imagine and dream with you and are able to create with pure intention.
No drama required as we say what we mean and cut through the bullshit. Having a blank canvas helps as we respect each other and there is nothing to prove and no box that confines us; only opportunities to create and lives to flourish.
There are so many things we can do with this creation energy and sometimes it doesn’t even matter if we are financially paid or not right now as we have chosen a path that rewards us in ways that are abundant. To feel the joy that lies within us, all that matters is that our energy is in service of the whole. And we will be paid well in ways we have yet to imagine as we shift from a world focused on transactions to building trusted partnerships in community. And we are working and investing in ourselves so we can step into the world with an invitation to join us in creating a healthy world.
The irony of it all is that everyone around us is predicting the future of work but we no longer no what work actually means beyond money being exchanged. So does that mean that when there is no financial exchange, we are all volunteering? This is of course tongue in cheek as we each have our own financial responsibilities with the life choices we made up until now. But we have lost the plot when it comes to knowing what work actually means in this century especially at a time where most of us are becoming aware of the true need to do our own, deep inner work.
In the dying story, success is measured by how much we achieved and accumulated; often leaving us depleted and with burnout and stress, while in the emerging story The Great Questioning is showing us that different choices are redefining work. And at some point, more and more people are needing purpose, meaning and community as much as financial means to be truly healthy.
Can you see how these divisions with the me, me, me world we created no longer make sense and give us an opportunity to take out a blank canvass, unlearn, learn and create what we actually need, together?
Hard Work is A Symptom We No Longer Need to Suffer Through
Is the point of life to work hard and is work just about making money? Hard work does not necessarily mean anything apart from putting time and effort into a task. And when that task is not valued by another, we often get frustrated and hurt because they may not recognize how hard we worked. And this is part of the quandary in a world that values efficiency and productivity and people need constant recognition. When someone mentions and is stressed out by how hard they are working, they may not be working at something they love.
Why isn’t it enough to feel self-fulfilled and understand that we each have different values and how hard we work is not the point? Impact is where the real magic happens, together.
Imagine spending a whole week preparing a very special menu, going to great effort to get the special ingredients, setting the table with care, and spending hours and hours in the kitchen, perfecting everything. And then in less than an hour, all the hard work is consumed. Someone may ask for a recipe and someone else may provide their critique of a better version of the meal. Some will appreciate the effort and hard work, while others will be oblivious. And the critic’s review is what gets the most attention when what’s truly in front of us is a delicious meal created by someone practicing the craft of cooking.
Each one of us has a very different set of values. Some of us will understand that the server in the restaurant, the cleaner in the hotel and the driver of a car service have some of the most demanding jobs, while many are leaving these jobs because they are fed up with being taken for granted.
We don’t attribute much to the invisible and often take it for granted, which is why everything is shifting right now when more and more people have had enough. Our collective stories are changing quickly now as people are making different choices around what’s truly valuable.
We are here to live our own lives; not tell others that our way is what they need. Some people need external recognition of achievements and success but more and more are walking away from stories that cause suffering of not being enough.
Working to Create Meaning, Together
Sometimes, the greatest gift we can give ourselves is to let go of a story or a person whose own suffering is depleting us. We no longer play a role in them being a victim or feeling offended when it is simply how they choose to react to the world. It may sound harsh but we didn’t come here to save or heal someone else, and our growth is possible when we focus on ourselves first and then understand the power and beauty that lie in imagining and creating something meaningful together.
We have an opportunity to surround ourselves with people, work, settings and anything that energizes us and say, enough to the characters you no longer choose to invite in to your life. Imagine taking deliberate steps towards who you resonate with and who resonates with you. The key is to find the balance within and value yourself. When you show up in the world whole, you lift those around you.
It’s time to let go of resistance, judgment and the need to get external validation since when you are truly co-creating with shared purpose, the focus is on what you are creating, not how hard you are working. It’s a subtle shift that releases us to be the best we can be in our own way.
Have you been underestimating yourself and looking for validation outside yourself? What’s your enough and what do you actually need? Can you let go ofsomething unauthentic, unreal, or limiting in your life? Isn’t it time to invite new opportunities and recognize that you deserve them, that you are capable of rising to them, and that old beliefs and compromises are done? In the emerging world, what does work mean to you and what relationship would you like to have with it?
When we work together toward the horizon of possibilities with people who share our purpose, there is no hard work required and no need to ever mention the investments being made individually because we are all doing our part without needing to make a big deal of it and having fun too.
Trust yourself, have faith in life, and go for it! All the ingredients are here to be discovered.