How to Be More Significant

There are over 7 Billion people on the planet. Just event thinking about that mind-boggling number is enough to make one think that we are truly insignificant in the grand scheme of things. I mean really, how could I possibly make a difference in the world around me while I am here? How can I be more significant?

You ARE significant though. You are loved by family and friends and connected to hundreds of people that you touch directly and indirectly as a leader. You matter to a lot of people.

It all starts with you thinking that you are significant and that what you do matters.

I saw this first hand when 2 years ago I was hospitalized after breaking my neck and sustaining a serious head injury, because of a freak accident. During the 2-weeks I was in a hospital bed I saw the impact that my being there had on my family, friends and some of my clients that came to see me.

I remember lying there thinking how incredibly blessed I was to have been able to touch the lives of so many people around me. I remember thinking that I mattered – maybe not to 7 Billion people but to the people in my universe – but I mattered, to those who were significant to me. In fact, I am convinced that my recovery was due to those people.

How to Be More Significant

So, how can you ‘become more significant’?  Here’s my list:

1. Core, Personal Values. Values are those things that guide us through life. They are the principles that help us decide what we will and will not stand for, do or accept in life. Discover yours. Talk about your guiding principles with your partner, your children and your friends.
2. Discover your purpose. Why do you do the things that you do? Why do you get up in the morning? What are doing when you are at your highest levels of motivation and commitment? When I discovered my personal purpose – which by the way is “to unlock potential in others” – my energy and drive to be the best at what I do exploded! Discovering my purpose put everything straight for me as a leader and now, I only do things that align with my purpose.
3. Give back. Grab your team, your family, your friends and get out there and make the lives of others better. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, food bank or in the community. Spread your love and energy by volunteering to pick up garbage in the park, organizing a food-drive for the local food bank or, and I love this one, wash your neighbors’ car, cut their grass, weed their garden or paint their fence. The love you will get back will be rewarding in ways that are hard to describe.
4. Hug. Get comfortable hugging (every chance you get) everyone that is significant in your life.

When my life changed in a split second 2 years ago and I found myself in a trauma hospital fighting for my life, I realized that if I wanted to be more significant in this crowded and confusing world, it was going to be up to me.

Robert Murray is a Vancouver, BC based Business Strategy Consultant, #1 Best Selling Author, and International Keynote Speaker. For further advice, insight and inspiration on how to unlock your inner leader, follow Robert on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

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