The very last and final part of my Magic Test of Seven. Yeah . . .
Seven graphs to guide your life.
1. Self-care
2. Connections
3. Be a linchpin
4. Start with Why
5. What’s my purpose
6. Energy Quadrants
7. A little flower
We often hear we need to start with ourselves. And surely that’s not bad advice. Self-care is not selfish. It’s very important. When we are happy, we can spread that happiness. When we are at ease, we can make people feel at ease. And when we are inspired, we can inspire others. So the first graph is all about Self-care. As you can see there’s a lot to do :) And often times it is not easy to keep it all in balance; being curious, exploring alternatives, prioritizing, making choices; yet at the same taking enough time to pause, rest, reflect and accept things for what they are.
The graph also covers several items that are indirectly aiding your self-care. If we learn to pay attention to other people; we are kind, supportive and patient than usually we find it much easier to be kind, supportive and patient with ourselves as well.
The second graph is still very self-centered. It even has a big ME in the middle. The graph comes from the book “How to change the world“. If we want to change the world, we must start somewhere and usually the best place to start with is ourselves. Yet, if we want to take anything anywhere, we’re going to need a supportive surrounding. I found this graphical representation quite intriguing. The exercise requires you to think of all the people you often interact with and show how much energy they give you and how much energy they take from you. There has to be some balance at least over time. If some people only drain you, you need to see how to change that. And if other’s give you a ton of energy, you might want to see what you can do for them in return.
The third graph I found on Pinterest quite some time ago. There have been plenty of moments at work as well as in my private life where this little drawing painted itself in my head. We all want to be a linchpin, at least I sure believe that we all want to matter. I am not so fuzzed about the A & B areas. Prodigy will eventually lead somewhere and can be quite beautiful by itself. And if you are a princess with charm and perseverance, to me, you’ve got a great talent right there.
So the only truly intriguing area is C. Talent plus Perseverance no matter how crucial they are for success, easily end up frustrating people when they still aren’t getting, to where they want to be. If you feel stuck, make sure you don’t underestimate the power of charm.
The fourth graph is from Simon Sinek. Start with why. With 23 Million views, one of the most watched TED talk of all times. His talk has a heavy focusses on business/work life but in the end the golden circle can be used in almost any situation “Why do we get up in the morning? And why should anyone care?” As Nietzsche said: He, who has a why to live for can bear almost any how. Asking “why?” can be a great starting point for a meaningful discussion with others or ourselves.
Leading quite nicely into graph number 5 which more specifically tries to decipher the question of the meaning of our lives. Why do we exist? What are we here to do? What can we contribute?
I learned about this graph during a dinner discussion at my parents house. My sister described the graph to me, and later that evening I drew it up in my notebook. I only drew three circles. “What do I love,” “What am I good at?”, “What does the world need”. It wasn’t until weeks later that I learned there’s actually a fourth circle :)
And to be very honest, no matter how simple this graph might look, answering these questions can be very hard. I sure haven’t figured this one out quite yet.
The sixth graph is easier; it’s one to use on a more regular basis. One of my favorite #6words are: “Love it, change it, leave it“. This graph can help gauge where in life we are at. We aren’t every day in that awesome top right corner. But if we find ourselves regularly in the bottom left corner it’s truly time for action. The longer we let that happen, the more difficult it becomes to move to the right and up again. If you regularly just put a little cross and ideally keep note of what made you feel that way, you’ll get to know yourself a lot better.
Last but not least is a little graph or perhaps more a little drawing I put on paper a few months back. As you can see, it’s a flower. I want everyone to bloom. As you can read in my blog headline to me, it all starts with three things. We need to embrace life, ourselves and each other. When we are able to do that; we accept ourselves and what happens to us; we appreciate life and the people in our lives; and we belong, to ourselves as much as to others.
From there we can make a contribution, we can shine, we can inspire, we can share and enjoy. Everything else is a result of blooming. Happiness, purpose, love & success will all be in the air.
Perhaps corny, a touch too sweet, too idealistic, surely not as sophisticated as the golden circle but it’s been on my desk for months now, and I still love looking at it. My little flower. I would like to see a field full of it. A world full of it. A world full of flowers that bloom.
