Appendix 1
20 Questions for a Personal Checklist
Finding Your Focus

I've pulled out the key points from Part I—Finding Your Focus. Your answers will become a sort of personal can't-not-do checklist. Keep your list and periodically revisit it; maybe write your answers down in a journal or on a whiteboard and look them over periodically. This is not rocket science or some mysterious process. It's about people doing the hard, purposeful, intentional work to figure out their can't not do for social change.

Give it some of the same kind of (well, almost) intentionality you may have already given to your career or life mate or how you raise your family or your values in life. I think many of these can be adapted to and discussed at your place of work as well. If you use the questions below, you will paint a picture, a collage that will greatly increase your chances of not only having a more positive impact on the world but on your life too.

What Are You a Determined Optimist About?

  1. You only need one can't not do at a time in your life, if you want to have true, sustained impact. Just one. Take a look at the different causes, fundraisers, events, discussions, and volunteer efforts in which you have participated. Google “social issues” if you need a few inventories or lists. Does anything stand out? What is it?
  2. You might find out what you are a determined optimist about as the result of a big epiphany or a significant, single event in your life. Or it might be something that emerges over many years. Can you pinpoint the origin? Why is this issue so important to you?
  3. Make sure that that you haven't chosen this cause because it is an obligation of some sort instead of something that you are passionate about—want to versus should do. Optimism feeds your passion and rejuvenates your energy far more effectively than duty. Are there underlying issues or hidden agendas or obligations influencing your decision?
  4. Your optimism must be grounded in reality. You have a plan or are part of a group that has one and you have strategies that will make real progress on that plan. Do you think you know what works effectively? Are you willing to research or work with people who have a plan and deeper knowledge than you?
  5. You must be flexible and resilient. You have a belief in the endgame but know that these problems are enormously complex and involve constant change. Do you know what your end goal looks like? What will success look like in 10 or more years? Do you have an “eyes on the prize” determination to stick with this issue for the long haul and be energized by meeting milestones along the way? Do you look at the complex and entrenched problem and think, “This is hard, but we will find a solution.” Do you believe this issue is solvable?
  6. Your “cause” might also be a personal or professional expertise (vs. a social problem) you feel you can offer to help. Maybe you're not passionate about one social problem. But what gifts do you have to offer your community? What expertise and experiences have you spent years building that you are eager and willing to put to work?
  7. Your endeavor doesn't have to be full-time or involve a career change. When you think about the cause, how do you see yourself fitting into the solution? Can you sustain your focus over many years?

Who Are You at Your Core?

  1. Look at your roots. Trace back through the early years of your life. Think about the people who made you who you are today. What kinds of things did you talk about as a family that you remember most vividly? What teachers, friends, relatives, parents influenced you the most and why? What did you most admire (or not) about the people who influenced your life?
  2. Look back through your adult years. What experiences do you clearly remember along the way that have had the greatest effect on who you are today? Are there common themes and threads that bring you to a certain issue or cause?
  3. Think about the future. What issue affects you in the most visceral, instinctual way? What sends that chill up your spine? What really grabs your heart, as well as your head?
  4. Assess your skills and knowledge. Look at your commitment to an issue just like you would a new job or a new team. What landing spot would best use your skills, experiences, and talents?
  5. Talk to others. Ask them what defines you. Make sure you talk with several people who know you through different experiences and vantage points. Take notes. Ask for feedback. Are there patterns or reflections that emerge? Are there any surprises that come out of your conversations?
  6. As you talk to others, ask them for feedback about yourself, but also ask how they might think about can't not do for their own lives. What can you learn about your core from listening to someone else?

What Are You Willing to Go through Hard Places For?

  1. Think about your mindset and your determination. When you think about the questions above, are you willing to walk through the fire for your cause (or to put your gifts and expertise to work) and keep on going? Is “failure not an option”?
  2. You will learn and be changed by your experiences. Are you just as excited about learning as you are about contributing? Are you open-minded or do you have your mind made up?
  3. Before you find that cause that you really want to dig into deeply, take inventory. What's going on in your life, your work, and your relationships? Do you have the capacity, right now, to invest a certain number of hours a week and commit some amount of personal energy and emotion for the long term?
  4. If you've decided you are ready to dig in to that hard place, think about how and who will support and replenish your energy. Have a personal support plan. Who will be your trusted allies? Who will you turn to who will listen? What will get you through the darkest moments and re-inspire you?
  5. You are going fail. It is part of the experience. What have you learned from failures in your life that inform the pathway you want to take toward your can't not do in the future? How did you persevere before and how might that knowledge and wisdom serve you in this work to keep going when things get messy, complex, hard?
  6. If you haven't yet felt some pain and hardship, you are almost certainly not close enough to the real problems to effect and be a part of real change. What are those hardships you might face? How would they affect your determination?
  7. Please spend some time thinking about what is meaningful versus what makes you happy. They aren't necessarily contradictory. How will your answers guide the direction you take?
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