Years ago, I asked a young boy begging on the streets of India what he wanted most in the world. His answer was simple: “a pencil.” I reached into my backpack and handed him one of my own, and immediately saw his eyes light up with possibility. In that moment, I felt a sense of purpose that has driven my actions ever since.
Here are three essential steps to unlock your sense of purpose and become unstoppable.
1. Get out of your comfort zone.
Go beyond the places that make you feel safe. When you do this, you’ll discover who you are and what makes you feel most alive. When I left the comforts of home to travel through the developing world as a college student, I soon began to immerse myself only in the experiences that spoke to a sense of meaning. It was through creating separation from my normal life that I found a connection to what I was most passionate about. Giving up normalcy and complacency is sometimes difficult, but the rewards greatly outweigh the costs.
2. Never take no from someone who can’t say yes.
Most people believe that in order to get things done they have to find a friend at a company that can offer them help. But the truth is, even if that friends wants to support you, they often don’t have the authority to move mountains on your behalf. For anything you aspire to achieve, there’s someone that can unlock the resources to make it happen. But you have to find who that decision-maker is before making the ask. Get in front of them, because if you have to hear No, you might as well make sure it’s from someone who at least could have said Yes.
3. Choose to make your life a story worth telling.
As humans, we are natural storytellers, and the tales of our experiences are ones that we should be excited to tell. Although most great stories require overwhelming odds of failure, it’s within the contours of uncertainty that life’s magic is discovered. Fight for what you believe in and surround yourself with people who help you grow. Because one day all of your possessions will fade away, but the strength of your legacy and the story of your life will remain. Make it a beautiful one.
To read more of these steps, pick up your copy of The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change now
Steven Manning
I am inspired by your story but was thinking how do they sharpen their pencils and is there a company that either donates them to you. You don’t need expensive sharpers as there are ones that you can buy and like a pencil are cheap and can have your own are one inexpensive sharpener for a class. I am a person that is what they call the working poor but your story shows me no matter how poor I may be their are people both in the US and around the world that are in far worse cases than me.I would love to help you if I can even if a small donations but would like to see if with your permission I could ask the students from local schools to help by donating a pencil to help your cause.I would be willing to ask schools,collect pencils and send them to you. I live in a suburb of New Orleans La. and we are a giving community as after Hurricane Katrina we had many people come to our aid and we are still rebuilding our city. I would love to hear back from you as if you have a letter that you already use to ask schools for donations.
Steve Daar
For the past few weeks I’ve seen so much about getting out onto the edges of your comfort zone and pushing those boundaries further & further (Ferriss, Altucher, Braun, and at least a few others for sure).
I’ve been getting there but know in my heart I’m holding back a bit. Thanks for this post to serve as a reminder to push out on those edges harder.
– Steve
Adam
I’m really happy to hear that Steve… take the first small step, and then chase the footprints you seek to leave behind.
Carey Jaros
Adam-
Amazed to see the journey you’ve had since that Bain cake I sent you in Australia. Keep on keepin’ on.
Your fellow Brunonian, Bainie and friend,
Carey
Adam
So good to hear from you Carey, and thanks for the kind words.. If not for you I never would have landed the Bain job!