The Element of Putting Ourselves On the Line and Its Hope for Accomplishing Things Big and Small

There are times in our lives when we will be called upon to put ourselves on the line.

David did it went he went up against Goliath.

Mahatma Gandhi did it when he went up against the British Raj.

Trevor Blake did it when he wrote 3 Simple Steps - A Map to Success in Business and Life.

Putting yourself on the line may involve going up against a formidable opponent, a formidable challenge, or a formidable goal.

For David, it was going up against a combatant who was larger and armed, and who was a fighter so confident in his skills, he dared the Israelites to send any man to fight him in single combat.

For Mahatma Gandhi, the formidable opponent was the British empire with its impressive array of resources.

For Trevor Blake, the formidable challenge was dealing with his own fears about revealing the intimate details of an early life marked by poverty, debt, family illness and other troubles.

Life is full of tough challenges and goals, as I mention in my post The Element of Imagination and Its Hope for Helping Us Meet Tough Challenges with Compassion and Artful Flair.

But challenges are opportunities.

For David, the challenge of defeating Goliath contained the opportunity to defend the honor of the Israelites and earn the reward promised by Saul.

For Mahatma Gandhi, the challenge of going up against the British Raj contained the opportunity to free India from British yoke.

For Trevor Blake, the challenge of telling his whole story contained the opportunity to release himself from the burdens and secrets of the past and bring hope and encouragement to people who had suffered similar challenges and deprivations.

Yes, within every challenge is contained an opportunity - the opportunity to change not just our own life, but the lives of other people.

Whether we move the needle a little, or whether we move the needle a lot, when we put ourselves on the line, our courage is to be commended.  

When the Pilgrims got on the Mayfair and sailed to America, they put their lives on the line.

In a few days, we will celebrate Thanksgiving, a feast which can be traced to that historic journey.

The country the world knows as the United States of America became a possibility only because of the courage of that first group of people who made for new shores, putting their lives on the line.

When we put ourselves on the line we don’t know where it will lead.

That first band of people did not know their journey would be the start of an idea for a brand new country that would eventually be home to over 300 million people from different parts of the world.

When a butterfly flaps its wings on one side of the world, it can change weather patterns on the other side of the world.

Every person who puts themselves on the line is a butterfly flapping its wings.

The person who decides to start blogging.  

The person who takes a bold new step.

The person who accepts the challenges of being in the limelight – whether a high profile actor or musician, a socialite, a CEO or founder of a company in the news, or a person in government.

Putting oneself on the line is inherently risky.

We do not risk death, disfigurement and disablement as people in dangerous occupations do.

But we do risk failure, indifference, ridicule, humiliation and a reduction in social status for any missteps we make.

In my previous career, I was an advertising copywriter. Before leaving India, I ran my own creative shop Purple Patch and had 6 people working for me.  I experienced an immediate reduction in social status upon immigrating to America.

I risk a further reduction in social status by writing about my challenges with depression, anger, being a tiger mom and my faults and missteps, professional and other.

I do it because I want to live an authentic life on my own terms.

Social status is a drag. On our financial resources, on our time, on our energy, on our freedoms and on our choices.

It is at odds with all of them.

The people living quiet lives in the book The Millionaire Next Door understand this.

They live quietly and unobtrusively, living life as they please, unhampered by considerations of social status. They may not want to be cheap, be loud, wear sweats or burp. But if they feel like doing that, they are able to do so without the whole world writing about it and photographing it.

Out of the limelight, people are free to go about their lives without social pressure.

To do the things we really want to do then may require us to give up our social status. 

As Michael Gates Gill did.  

A high-profile advertising account manager, Michael became a Starbucks barista in his 50s.  He gives an account of his journey in his book How Starbucks Saved My Life: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else.

Don’t be surprised to find yourself craving the same kind of liberation.

A word of caution, however….

We should put ourselves on the line only for something we value.

It’s important to differentiate between value-based actions and valueless actions.

Deciding to stop paying our bills, driving crazy fast in our cars, drinking ourselves silly, doing drugs, sowing wild oats, breaking the law and being irresponsible is pointless and valueless.

Similarly, if I was to rant and rave about my depressive issues, anger issues and professional failures on my blog, what would be the value of that?

It’s the fact I have successfully conquered those issues that is of value and which makes my experience worth sharing with readers.

What values are you prepared to put yourself on the line for?

Don’t worry about the resources

Once your desire is ignited, you will find the resources.

You may find you need much less than you thought you would need.

David’s resource was a simple slingshot and 5 stones.  By angling the slingshot right, he launched the stone at the middle of Goliath’s forehead and struck him down.

Mahatma Gandhi’s resource was just the idea of satyagraha or non-violent protest.

Trevor Blake’s resource was just his memory and his courage to tell his story.

I will end this post with 3 takeaways about putting yourself on the line.

Put yourself on the line only for your values.

Social status is over-rated.

You contain all the resources you need.

Thanks for reading and have a great day and week…….M……a Pearl-Seeker like you. P.S. The butterfly pictured in this post was painted by my friend Julia Kaplan who is the subject of two posts on this blog, most recently, The United States of Friendship Part 8.