Living a Heroic Life
Living a Heroic Life
We live in a world today that idolizes hero’s, people who have done something out of the ordinary and something that others may not be willing to do themselves. But, what if those things we idolize about a hero became common in our own life; what would that look like?
The great thing is, for the last 450 plus years the guidelines of what it takes to live a heroic life has been demonstrated by the Jesuits for us. So, how can we live a heroic life? By applying the four pillars to our everyday life, just like the Jesuits taught their recruits to, and have continued to teach for centuries.
Being Self-Aware. We live in a “me” society and as an American culture, we are very independent and self-centered, but that doesn’t mean that we are self-aware. So what does it mean to be self-aware? Being self-aware means to know your strengths and weaknesses, to know what you value as a person and to develop and understand your worldview.
In the book Heroic Leadership, Chris Lowney talks about leadership springing from within, and knowing who I am, as well as what I do. The first pillar of living a heroic life is being self-aware, and it looks like this… First and foremost we need to know ourselves, we need to seek out what we want in life. In the early days, Jesuit recruits would lock themselves away to search deep down inside themselves to learn what they really want in life. They would emerge from this often month long solitude knowing what they wanted in life, how they were going to get it and what weaknesses they would have to overcome in order to get there.
Only the person who knows what he or she wants can pursue it energetically and inspire others to do so. Only those who have pinpointed their weaknesses can conquer them. Obvious principles, but rarely heeded in practice. Chris Lowney. Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-Year-Old Company That Changed the World (Kindle Locations 249-251). Kindle Edition.
Self-reflection and awareness is a lifelong journey but we need to start somewhere in order to know where we want to go in life. When we learn how we’re wired, we can then live our purpose, and a fulfilled life. Everyday we need to pause for a few moments and look back at our day, maybe keep a journal on what we did, where we were successful, and where we failed. Knowing ourselves is one of the greatest investments we can make. Lowney puts it like this…
Research increasingly suggests that IQ and technical skills are far less crucial to leadership success than is mature self-awareness. In other words, the hard evidence points to the critical soft skills that are encompassed by knowing oneself. Chris Lowney. Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-Year-Old Company That Changed the World (Kindle Locations 262-263). Kindle Edition.
The next step in living a heroic life is being innovative. Often times the goal may be the same, but the process in reaching the goal may vary greatly. The Jesuits taught that if we are grounded in our principles and values, we can freely adjust to a changing world with out fear that our values and principles will change. Often times we hold too tightly to the things that have worked in the past that we lose out in the future because we were unwilling to change. During our times of self-reflection, we should start to ask ourselves, how could this have been done different? We may have done a certain task the same way for years, but what if there is an easier way? By giving ourselves permission to question, dream and innovate, we can ensure that we continue to grow and develop ourselves. Our culture has changed dramatically over the last 50 years and some people have been lost because of that, and are sitting on the sidelines of life with nothing. Let’s live a life where we are quick, flexible and open to new ideas, so we don’t get cast aside, but rather are leading the pack in the right direction, still holding on to our values and principles.
Do you wait for golden opportunities to come your way, or do you extract the gold out of your opportunities? Living a life of heroism means striving to shape your future rather than sitting by and letting the world shape you. Jesuit teachings say that living a heroic life is not about taking big risks every once in a while but rather making a heroic life a daily exercise. Reflecting on every decision you make as though it would change the world. How would you change your life and the decisions you make if you thought it would impact the world?
How one chooses profoundly affects personal satisfaction and performance quality; after all, how can you not be motivated when the “well-being of the whole world” depends on what you do? Chris Lowney. Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-Year-Old Company That Changed the World (Kindle Locations 2382-2383). Kindle Edition.
Finally lets look at love, what does it look like to live a live full of love? Love unites us and knits us together as a people. When we live a life of love we see greatness in people. Love gives us the passion and desire to unlock greatness in others, and in return, others will unlock our greatness. Love is the glue that has held the Jesuit people together for centuries. Love breads motivation and engagement in others. When we love those who are around us, growth happens, in them, as well as in ourselves. If we can train and discipline ourselves to stop and look at things through the lens of love we will see things we have never seen before. We will see potential in things formally seen valueless, talents will be seen that have yet to be tapped and an amazing unification will take place that will unite people stronger together than anything else.
Living a heroic live is more than following a few rules, it is a transformation of our mindset that we must continue to do on a daily basis. It is a lifestyle of success that transforms our being and continues to transform us. It is a lifestyle that unites the life we live with the purpose we were created for.