Chapter 18
Forge Your Path, Create Your Legacy
As a single footstep will not make a path on the Earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.
—Henry David Thoreau
If you've patiently worked your way through the previous chapters, I hope you've experienced an incredible journey. You should now have a profoundly better understanding of who you are and what to do with your life.
That said, there's one more exercise to tackle—writing your Letter of Reflection. Your letter will provide a concise summation of the goals you've identified and help keep you on point as you share your Gifts with the world.
My personal reinvention began after having a vision of my funeral. The words being spoken graveside ring as loudly now as they did then: “Here lies Steve Olsher. He devoted his life to chasing the almighty dollar.”
I suddenly realized that aside from family and friends, the only one who substantially benefited from my existence was me, me, and—did I mention—me. I began to think about how to best use the years I had left and started wondering what accomplishments I could look back on towards the end of my life that would make me feel proud.
Interestingly, none of them involved making money.
While I'd enjoyed moderate success as an entrepreneur, it became clear that everything I'd done as a professional was focused on profit. I'd like to think that my real estate developments provide comfortable places for people to live and work, but if I were to die tomorrow, my tenants wouldn't be lining up to pay their final respects; they'd simply want to know where to send their rent check.
Liquor.com is an awesome website if you're looking for an expert guide to cocktails and spirits, but there are tens of thousands of online resources that offer niche-focused information.
My aim is to have a more meaningful impact on the world.
Writing this book, creating and facilitating The Reinvention Workshop, and, I hope, helping you find your destiny is my way of heeding that call. What I now realize is there's a significant difference between living well and living for the sake of making money.
Don't get me wrong; each of us is entitled to make a great living. I'm not one of those people who would suggest you resign yourself to life as a starving artist simply because you're compelled to draw.
What I am saying is that we're all obligated by our common bond of humanity to not only pursue what brings us financial success, but what also makes a positive impact on our community, our environment, and our world.
With this in mind, in 2009 I wrote my Letter of Reflection. My goal was to envision a life I'd be proud to remember in my final days.
Completing my Letter of Reflection revitalized my sense of purpose. It concisely sums up what I want to accomplish between the day I wrote it and the day I leave this world.
Writing your own Letter of Reflection is a highly effective way to face your mortality, realize your time on this planet is limited, and provide you with direction and motivation to achieve the goals dearest to you.
As Stephen Covey wrote in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “You must begin with the end in mind.” Not to be morbid, but nothing represents “the end” more than death.
Take a few quiet moments to imagine yourself in your final days. Now ask yourself these questions:
- How do I feel about the life I lived?
- Am I happy about how my life affected the world?
- Did my life have the meaning I intended?
- Did I accomplish the things most important to me?
- When I imagine the people visiting me in my final days, do I sense they feel real loss, or are they there simply because they feel obligated?
Chances are, most of your answers may not be positive. The good news is, you're still alive. And while tomorrow isn't a given, you can immediately begin constructing the life and legacy you desire and take full advantage of however many years are left to you.
First, try to identify all the things you most want to accomplish. Look through your answers to this book's exercises, and deep within, for inspiration. Now answer these questions:
To become who you were born to be, it's essential to create goals and objectives that serve to both anchor you from diversions and steer you toward your destiny.
Your Letter of Reflection represents the culmination of your journey with this book. You've mastered The Four Stages of Learning, The Vortex of Vulnerability, The Vortex of Invincibility, and The Pinnacle. You've lived The Seven Life-Altering Principles and discovered your WHAT.
With these in mind, write your Letter of Reflection in the space that follows. Begin with the end in mind. Everything else will fall into place.
If you've completed your Letter of Reflection, I hope it proved illuminating to create. Refer to it whenever you feel adrift; it will serve as a powerful guide to your future.
Consider what you've written a first draft. It's a good idea to revise your Letter of Reflection periodically—once a year or so—to reflect changes in your life. If you keep each draft, you'll end up with a fascinating record of your process of transformation, and how your hopes and dreams evolved over time.
The Beginning of Your Journey
You've reached the end of this book's exercises but merely the beginning of your journey. The world awaits the Gifts you have to share.
As nineteenth century attorney and Civil War officer Henry Hancock wisely observed,
Living life in a powerful manner requires that you choose to live powerfully. Pursue living as who you were born to be and you'll achieve your true destiny.
A Final Word
In 1859, politician and education advocate Horace Mann advised, “Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for mankind.” How are you going to leave your mark? What will your contribution be?
You have the capacity to make an extraordinary difference in the lives of those around you, as well as benefit generations to come.
While you transition towards becoming who you were born to be, remember that those who have made their mark—people such as Richard Branson, Sam Zell, Sean Combs, and Mother Teresa—all began just like you. None were born with silver spoons in their mouths. Their journey began by taking a first step. They then consistently chose paths most congruent with who they inherently are.
Virgin founder Richard Branson started by selling one record at a time through a mail-order business. Real estate and media tycoon Sam Zell convinced one landlord to let him manage his building. Entertainment mogul Sean Combs interned at Uptown Records before becoming an executive and eventually, releasing his first album. Mother Teresa sought to bring comfort to one person in need.
Each experienced hardship. Each experienced failure. Each persevered. To attain meaningful satisfaction and contentment, heed the words of Buddha: “It is better to travel well than to arrive.” This is an essential mind-set for cultivating ultimate achievement.
Remember, the destination is the road. The journey is the destination.
Savor each step along your new path.
The End of Our Journey Together
Enormous congratulations for completing What Is Your WHAT? Discovering who you were born to be and, hopefully, beginning the process of personal reinvention are incredible accomplishments.
This journey has required you to explore the very depths of your being. You may have experienced some discomfort, and even pain, along the way as you shed self-destructive habits. I applaud you for sticking with it. By completing this book and pursuing what you've learned, I'm confident you'll enjoy profound and long-lasting, positive change.
I'd love to hear about how What Is Your WHAT? affected you. Please email me at [email protected].
Please also feel encouraged to join the What Is Your WHAT? community and receive my monthly NICHETIZE! newsletter at WhatIsYourWhat.com. As a special bonus for signing up, you'll receive exclusive access to over 20 hours of video footage from the interviews I conducted with those who shared their WHAT at the end of each chapter. Gain invaluable insight as to how Larry Winget, Marci Shimoff, Dan Miller, Guy Kawasaki, Mari Smith, and others traversed their respective minefields to discover what they are truly compelled to do.
If you're interested in working together, I encourage you to apply to join my private year-long coaching program, The Circle of 10. Over the course of 12 months, I'll help you identify your WHAT, create a powerful plan of action for bringing your WHAT to fruition, and teach you how to monetize what you're compelled to do. Enrollment is limited to just 60 hand-selected people from across the globe per year. Nothing will build your business faster or empower you to share your Gifts with the world in a more expedited fashion than working with me personally. More information can be found at CircleOf10.com.
If you'd like to learn more about The Reinvention Workshop, how you can become a certified Reinvention Workshop teacher and assist people in discovering their WHAT, or take the Workshop either online or in person, please visit TheReinventionWorkshop.com.
To access free NICHETIZE! training, content-laden webinars, or for our schedule of upcoming events, please visit SteveOlsher.com.
Lastly, to book me as a speaker, media guest, or to just drop me a line and say “hello,” please contact me at [email protected].
I look forward to hearing from you.
In Closing
Consider the words of motivational speaker Les Brown:
“Most people fail in life not because they aim too high and miss, but because they aim too low and hit.”
And some people never aim at all. I encourage you to aim as high as you can imagine…and then aim higher. Commandeer life by living like a sniper. Don't just endeavor to hit the target—aim for the center of the bull's eye.
The world is waiting for you!
- There's a significant difference between living well and living for the sake of making money.
- We're all obligated by our common bond of humanity to pursue things that have a positive impact on our community, our environment, and our world.
- Your Letter of Reflection provides a sense of purpose and helps define what you hope to accomplish between now and the end of your life.
- As Stephen R. Covey wrote, “You must begin with the end in mind.”
- Pursue living as who you were born to be and you'll achieve your true destiny.
- As Horace Mann said, “We should be ashamed to die until we have made some major contribution to mankind.”
- To cultivate ultimate achievement, remember the words of Buddha: “It is better to travel well than to arrive.”
- Living life in a powerful manner requires that you choose to live powerfully.
- The world is waiting for you!
