All that really matters is your impact

What you do for a living isn’t nearly as important as the impact your work has on your health, well-being, and the contribution you want to make in the world.

What we have and own doesn’t really matter (once our basic human needs are met). Yet many people consume things excessively and in ways that have a negative impact on their finances, the planet, and the lives of others in the chain of production. 

Being able to buy your children everything they want isn’t nearly as important as how they feel about the love, attention, and support they receive from you. 

Your future is now

Every single moment is a unique opportunity for you to make a choice that will profoundly change the rest of your life and that of others. Every decision you make matters. 

Don’t be fooled into thinking your destiny, the lives of others, and the sustainability of the planet is based on what you do in the future. The future is only the manifestation of every single thought, decision, and action you’ve made the past, plus whatever you decide to do next. 

The only reality is NOW. This very moment. 

Every time you interact with others, you have an impact. 

Every time you leave your home, you have an impact. 

Every time you speak or remain silent, you have an impact. 

Every time to decide to make a purchase, you have an impact. 

Every time you do nothing, you have an impact.

Switching off your autopilot

Your impact isn’t something you can turn on or off–you are always having an impact.

But you can choose to switch off your auto-pilot and act consciously with positive intention (one of the principles I discuss in my book Heartatude, the 9 Principles of Heart-Centered Success).

The first step is to consciously decide on the impact you want to have (for you and others), decide your intentions (how you intend to be), and align your actions to these insights. 

This can be relatively easy to do in situations you are familiar with.

However, in areas new to you or where you have mindset/emotional blocks, you may need to get help, support, or educate yourself so you make better-informed decisions and act more appropriately.  This is true for all of us, no matter where we are on our personal development journey. 

Sometimes positive intentions aren’t good enough

At one level, we all always do the best we can with the resources we have available at any particular time. But entering into situations with positive intention can’t be an excuse for hurting or killing people.

How often do you hear people sharing positive intentions as ways to justify how they didn’t mean to hurt or offend people? As human beings, we can’t control how our actions (or inaction) are interpreted, and we rarely know the full impact of what we do. However, where our actions have a negative impact, especially when due to ignorance, incompetence, or arrogance, it’s important for us to learn, accept the consequences, and take remedial action where necessary. 

Your impact will always matter more than your intention. Few people go out with the intention of hurting or killing others. Yet plenty of kind and compassionate people do. I’ll be sharing more about Intention versus Impact in my next blog. 

Let your truth guide your impact

A friend was recently telling me about a job she was applying for. On one hand, she said she was looking for a simpler, quieter, and more rural lifestyle. But the job she was applying for would have meant continuing to live in a city that exposed her to the same people and lifestyle she was keen to escape. She was so focused on getting a job, she hadn’t considered exploring job options in places she’d prefer to live and making a change that would make a positive impact on her health and wellbeing. 

Being disconnected from our truth is a common illness. Symptoms include saying one thing and doing another, allowing what’s happening around us to cloud our judgment and failing to step back to consider what’s really important before making important decisions. 

Most people drift through days, months, and years running on autopilot without any conscious awareness of the impact they are having, or the part they are playing in their experience of life–the good and the bad. 

If you want to feel better, cope better, make a change in your life or have more impact in the world, you need to do something different to whatever you’re doing now. 

Often described as one of the most authentic and inspiring souls you can meet, Alisoun is on a mission to make it easier for women in their midlife years and beyond to feel good, enjoy good friendships, and make the most of life. 

Alisoun’s keynote talks, training, mentoring, and best-selling books, Nourishing Friendships, Heartatude: The 9 Principles of Heart-Centered Success and Give-to-Profit have favourably changed the good fortune of thousands of people worldwide. Alisoun loves spending time with friends, exploring the world, and living by the beach in Scotland.

P.S. Want help working out what’s next for you?

I help women explore how to make the most of the second half of life and turn their dreams into reality. Book a free 20-minute discovery session with me <HERE> to help you decide if I’d be the right person to accompany you on this journey.

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