The Hero's Journey

Lessons Learned this week

  

Key points from A Hero’s Journey, by Jeff Sandefer

Mr. Sandefer begins by saying that we each have a special mission that will only be successful if we have faith and courage to find our entrepreneurial calling.

All too often, however, we get caught up worrying about the wrong things, in fact, he says the journey is about us, but it’s also not about us. 

He advises - Choose the Hero’s journey:

·       Live every moment like it matters as if you have an important mission

·       What matters is not the end (what we waste our time worrying about) but how the Hero is changed on the journey!

He gives 3 steps to success:

1.     Learn how to learn

2.     Learn to make money

3.     Live a life of meaning

He says, “never give up your search for God-given gifts…find a calling that fits your special gifts.” Then he encourages:

·       ask five people who know us well to help us identify what those gifts are.  He says to ask, “what do I do better than others” and to seek for specifics.

·       Then think of the last time you were engaged in a task where you lost track of time because of the joy you found in the doing.  What is something you do for the sake of doing it?

·       A calling must also serve others.  He asks, “what need today calls out to your heart? What problems were you put on earth to solve?”

We must strive to be a good person – he advises:

·       Write a list of all the “I will not” statements.  Then if you do cross those ethical guardrails, recognize that as a signal to stop and to pause and reflect.  To stick to your guns, he notes that it is useful to write a letter to your future self so that at the moment of temptation, you can “hear a better voice”.

We must consider that at the end of our lives, we must consider who we loved and who loved us.  He advises:

·       Choose fellow travelers well

·       Don’t underestimate the power of extraordinary people.

·       We should surround ourselves by people of character because we will become like those we surround ourselves with.

·       And finally, don’t neglect or forget your precious family ties.

Our journey is not about happiness and it will not be easy, the stakes are higher than that.  But we will find satisfaction.  Our increased satisfaction will cause us to make a difference in the world. 

Finally, Mr. Sandefer notes that somewhere along the way, we will stop measuring ourselves against others.  He advises:

·       Think of someone truly grateful for but whom you never thanked.  Write a one page letter of gratitude, find them, and read it to them aloud.  He promises we will be happier and more satisfied for doing so.

·       “People who believe they are lucky turn out to be luckier.”

Being rich simply means we have learned to live on less than we earn, so time belongs to us.  

Our greatest horror at the end of our life will be if we wasted our life.  Don’t waste your life.