Abraham Maslow, famous psychologist behind the hierarchy of Needs diagram, once noted that for a person to be fully self-actualized you must have accomplished two things, 1. To be free from the good opinion of others and 2. To be free from concern of outcomes. Leaders of all stripes, perhaps especially non-profit leaders, should stop and think on those concepts. How often are we pinned in, sidetracked, stopped short, cowed by fear into inaction because we fear losing the good opinion of others? How many times have we worried and fretted over doing the right thing because we weren’t sure what the outcome would be?
Like many of you perhaps, I often over-concern myself with what others will think and how ‘doing the right thing’ will be perceived. What is the answer to these normal human reactions?
LIVE YOUR CALLING
Fear comes from trying to live someone else’s life or live up to the expectation of the crowd. Instead, live your most authentic life. What mark are you hoping to make on the world, on your organization, community, family and friends? What is the purpose of your life and of every interaction you’ll have today? Live for that calling, not the opinion and applause of the crowd.
Ironically, you’ll likely be most remembered and admired in the long run for being exactly who God created you to be, doing what He called you to do, instead of trying to be a cheap copy of someone else.
What keeps us from living our calling? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
David Curry
