I was in a gift shop a few months ago and saw a little hardcover book that caught my eye. The title was "Hell Yes!"
It caught my attention! I read the whole thing right there and then. (It's short but compelling.)
For me, the key thing I took away from it was in the introduction to the book. Elizabeth Cogswell Baskin, the author and CEO and creative director of Tribe, Inc., an ad agency with a focus on branded content, says:
I don't know about you, but I'll bet you're busier than you really want to be. You might be the CEO or the office intern, a stay-at-home parent or a part-time student, a doctor, a lawyer, a butcher, a baker, or a candlestick maker, but my money says you're overcommitted.
Do you really want to be one of those people who are always overwhelmed? Imagine being highly productive but more relaxed. Imagine waking up excited about what's on your calendar, going through your day feeling energized and joyful, or even having nice roomy holes in your schedule.
The trick is to do what is on your true path and skip the rest. "Follow your bliss," said Joseph Campell, the esteemed twentieth century psychologist...And as Alan Cohen, author and speaker, says, "You only have to decide one thing. If it's not 'Hell yes,' then I don't care what it is.
Before you commit to anything - a meeting, a lunch date, a favor for a friend, a volunteer opportunity, a marriage proposal, or even another piece of pie - use this simple measurement to weight your options.
If it's not a "Hell yes!" then it's a "Hell no!"
There are many people who would say this is not a realistic way to go through life (and for them it isn't because that belief is a self-fulfilling prophecy). But I believe it's just a choice...a choice that requires enough discipline to make your joy, what lights you up, what makes you come alive (which are all to me clues to your deeper purpose and the reason you're on the planet) your highest priority.
What perhaps is not realistic is expecting to be able to live by the Hell Yes! philosophy 100% of the time starting today. It's a practice to develop over time. But if even you started to think along these lines and make even 5-10% of your decisions by this method, how would that change things for you over the long term? A lot. As the saying goes, a plane that changes its course by even 1% ends up at a totally different place!
Looking back on 2010, I can see lots of ways that I myself did not practice the Hell Yes! strategy enough. And the immediate result of that, by my own experience, was more fatigue, less fun and less progress on my purpose than I otherwise could have had. I did also make a lot of Hell Yes! choices though, and those choices actually led to more fun, more clients, more income, more progress on my purpose, and greater benefit to those around me.
I've tested it and the Hell Yes! strategy is neither self-indulgent nor frivolous. To me, it's essential for anyone who is truly committed to following their passion and their purpose and creating a thriving business from that.
When I make sure to make it to my yoga class (always a Hell Yes!) instead of "powering through" to do that extra hour of work when I already feel tired and uninspired, for example, I can come back to the work refreshed and more creative and accomplish three times as much in the next hour of work than I otherwise would have, and the quality of of the work is significantly higher.
Fill your own cup first and you have will more good to overflow to the things you do and the people around you in a way that is sustainable and will not lead to burnout or common health or relationship imbalances or addictions. And you, and the people around you, will have a lot more fun along the way (isn't that really the point?).
You will also have a delighted clientele that is much more likely to refer you to others because you're giving off a different kind of vibe than most people. You will naturally set yourself apart, and once you get into that realm, there is no competition for you or what you do. You are in a category all your own.
The spirit of this little book and its approach to life and business reminds me of one my favourite quotes that I often share:
Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. ~ Howard Thurman
So if you know deep inside that following your passion and serving others with it is the highest path for you, the one where you can make your greatest contribution, then the next time you have a choice to make, a commitment of your time and energy of some kind, ask yourself "Is this a Hell Yes! for me?"
If not, ask yourself why you are choosing to do it, and if you are really serving yourself and the others around you in the highest and best way by doing some kind of "should," or to meet someone else's expectation of you. The hallmark of your highest path is your joy - the deep and resonant joy of your Soul (as opposed to the short-term gratification of your ego which is a totally different thing).
You can check out the "Hell Yes!" book here: http://amzn.to/fkNHD3
It caught my attention! I read the whole thing right there and then. (It's short but compelling.)
For me, the key thing I took away from it was in the introduction to the book. Elizabeth Cogswell Baskin, the author and CEO and creative director of Tribe, Inc., an ad agency with a focus on branded content, says:
I don't know about you, but I'll bet you're busier than you really want to be. You might be the CEO or the office intern, a stay-at-home parent or a part-time student, a doctor, a lawyer, a butcher, a baker, or a candlestick maker, but my money says you're overcommitted.
Do you really want to be one of those people who are always overwhelmed? Imagine being highly productive but more relaxed. Imagine waking up excited about what's on your calendar, going through your day feeling energized and joyful, or even having nice roomy holes in your schedule.
The trick is to do what is on your true path and skip the rest. "Follow your bliss," said Joseph Campell, the esteemed twentieth century psychologist...And as Alan Cohen, author and speaker, says, "You only have to decide one thing. If it's not 'Hell yes,' then I don't care what it is.
Before you commit to anything - a meeting, a lunch date, a favor for a friend, a volunteer opportunity, a marriage proposal, or even another piece of pie - use this simple measurement to weight your options.
If it's not a "Hell yes!" then it's a "Hell no!"
There are many people who would say this is not a realistic way to go through life (and for them it isn't because that belief is a self-fulfilling prophecy). But I believe it's just a choice...a choice that requires enough discipline to make your joy, what lights you up, what makes you come alive (which are all to me clues to your deeper purpose and the reason you're on the planet) your highest priority.
What perhaps is not realistic is expecting to be able to live by the Hell Yes! philosophy 100% of the time starting today. It's a practice to develop over time. But if even you started to think along these lines and make even 5-10% of your decisions by this method, how would that change things for you over the long term? A lot. As the saying goes, a plane that changes its course by even 1% ends up at a totally different place!
Looking back on 2010, I can see lots of ways that I myself did not practice the Hell Yes! strategy enough. And the immediate result of that, by my own experience, was more fatigue, less fun and less progress on my purpose than I otherwise could have had. I did also make a lot of Hell Yes! choices though, and those choices actually led to more fun, more clients, more income, more progress on my purpose, and greater benefit to those around me.
I've tested it and the Hell Yes! strategy is neither self-indulgent nor frivolous. To me, it's essential for anyone who is truly committed to following their passion and their purpose and creating a thriving business from that.
When I make sure to make it to my yoga class (always a Hell Yes!) instead of "powering through" to do that extra hour of work when I already feel tired and uninspired, for example, I can come back to the work refreshed and more creative and accomplish three times as much in the next hour of work than I otherwise would have, and the quality of of the work is significantly higher.
Fill your own cup first and you have will more good to overflow to the things you do and the people around you in a way that is sustainable and will not lead to burnout or common health or relationship imbalances or addictions. And you, and the people around you, will have a lot more fun along the way (isn't that really the point?).
You will also have a delighted clientele that is much more likely to refer you to others because you're giving off a different kind of vibe than most people. You will naturally set yourself apart, and once you get into that realm, there is no competition for you or what you do. You are in a category all your own.
The spirit of this little book and its approach to life and business reminds me of one my favourite quotes that I often share:
Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. ~ Howard Thurman
So if you know deep inside that following your passion and serving others with it is the highest path for you, the one where you can make your greatest contribution, then the next time you have a choice to make, a commitment of your time and energy of some kind, ask yourself "Is this a Hell Yes! for me?"
If not, ask yourself why you are choosing to do it, and if you are really serving yourself and the others around you in the highest and best way by doing some kind of "should," or to meet someone else's expectation of you. The hallmark of your highest path is your joy - the deep and resonant joy of your Soul (as opposed to the short-term gratification of your ego which is a totally different thing).
You can check out the "Hell Yes!" book here: http://amzn.to/fkNHD3
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