Looking for Remarkable in All The Wrong Places? - Betty Streff
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Looking for Remarkable in All The Wrong Places?

remarkable smiling grill

Looking for Remarkable in All The Wrong Places?

“Be genuine. Be remarkable. Be worth connecting with.~Seth Godin

 

Sometimes, we just get lucky don’t we? A close parking spot on a rainy day, no line at the car wash, or cracking open an egg and finding it’s a double yolker! This week, I scored big time in my reading. Joshua Becker is one of my favorite writers and I eat up his blog Becoming Minimalist. It’s one of my top picks. Today, inside his always-meaty post, was a reference to a terrific news article. That’s the “good stuff” equivalent of a double yolk egg!

 

This time, Becker wrote about finding meaning in the mundane. Let’s face it. Most of us will never grace the cover of Vogue or Rolling Stone but that doesn’t mean we can’t be remarkable, a genuine classic. Because you probably won’t take time to read it, I’ll give you the “Cliff’s Notes.” In a nutshell, we can find all the joy, meaning and fulfillment we will ever need. We don’t need to go looking. It’s is right in the palm of our hand if we live the life we’re given with focus and attention. By being intentional and giving our best effort right here, right now. In our private life, without “likes” or video capture.

 

“The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel.”~Steven Furtick

 

classic

 

Remarkable but never famous

 

But wait. I was telling you about the double yolk effect. In Becker’s post, he tells of a recent article in the New York Times. It was written by a bright young woman, Emily Esfahani Smith. You can bet I’ve started to follow her too! Her piece spoke of our culture’s obsession with fame and notoriety. According to Smith, we’re so star-struck today that we’re blind to the beauty of an ordinary life lived with dignity, passion, and purpose. I lay that unfortunate notion at the feet of our fixation with social media. Furthermore, it seems like we’ve been duped into believing we have to change the world or be Mark Zuckerberg to matter.

 

Smith refers to a piece of literature, Middlemarch, written by Victorian author George Eliot. Yes, you remember right from English Lit. George was a nom de plume, Eliot was a woman. The heroine of the story is a lady who “embraces her life as it is and contributes to those around her as she can.” The book skillfully chronicles what a meaningful life is actually about. In her words, it’s “connecting and contributing to something beyond the self, in whatever humble form that may take.” Here’s one of the most memorable passages from the entire 700-pager:

 

“But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts.”~ George Eliot

 

We can all choose to become remarkable

 

And yes, this means you. Most important, you don’t ever have to be famous and that’s perfectly ok. All that’s required is a willingness to show up and do the next right thing. Make a wise choice and do it again, repeat it tomorrow. Be the one who shares a smile, a good word. Speak encouragement and notice what’s going right. This doesn’t mean we should turn a blind eye to problems. What’s more, I’m not asking you to be a Pollyanna.

 

Some people can light up a room with their presence. Watch those folks, learn what they do and copy it!  You have the capacity to be a joy-bringer, a tears-dryer and a binder of wounds. Most of all, with each small act of kindness, my friend, you move another day closer to becoming remarkable. When all is said and done, I’ll take remarkable over famous any day!

 

 

“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.” ~ Marcus Aurelius

 

Friends, please consider becoming a subscriber and if you find a bit of inspiration in my words, I hope you’ll share them with someone. Remember, I’m always hungry for your comments! Looking for a speaker to encourage and inspire your group? Message me and let’s talk. See you Monday!

8 Comments
  • Amy James
    Reply

    Love!!!

    September 7, 2017 at 6:07 am
  • Kim
    Reply

    Well said

    September 7, 2017 at 7:38 am
  • Gail
    Reply

    I love it! And I do believe that each one of us makes a difference – more than we will ever know.

    September 7, 2017 at 7:55 am
  • Nancy Williams
    Reply

    Great read, Betty! It struck a resounding chord with me. So simple, so true. Why do we sometimes make everything so much more difficult than it needs to be!?

    September 7, 2017 at 9:49 am
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