GAME ON: I'm Ready to Give Back in Unique Way, While Putting Other People's Dreams in Spotlight

On January 24, I decided to “adopt” six people and help them mark something off their life lists. I simply wanted to give back in a new and different way, writing about the experience along the way. (Original post)

Well, I’ve chosen six people AND I’ve identified something on their lists that I feel like I can help them accomplish.

Some of these people had a Bucket List (big-ticket items they want to accomplish before they die), while others had a list of life’s simple pleasures they wanted to embrace sooner than later.

It didn’t matter to me – I just wanted to help them accomplish something that was significant to them.

NOTE: It was important to me that “helping” didn’t revolve around monetary support. Example:

LIST MAKER: “Buy a new house”

ME: “Here is a check for $300,000”

I wanted to focus on the skill sets that I could bring to the table, my connections and/or my ability to take their excuses and flush ’em down the metaphorical toilet. (Besides, I’m unemployed and poor.)

It has taken me almost a month to take the next step, because I’m being extremely deliberate in mapping out the process. I want to be able to re-create this over and over and over again.

Why?

Because I firmly believe this could turn into a global movement – encouraging people to temporarily take the emphasis off themselves and help someone else. Like I mentioned before, I feel like this is a completely unique way of giving back.

I'll explain.....

Feeding the homeless at the shelter and mentoring at-risk kids is important, but so is putting an emphasis on someone else’s hopes and dreams.

While people sleeping on the streets is tragic, so is seeing people going through the motions and not truly living life. While it’s heartbreaking to realize there are hungry and sick people in the world, it’s just as sad to see people living in a haze of complacency and excuses.

My goal for this project is four-fold:

• Help pull people out of their ruts (before they end up in a ditch);

• Inspire others to live boldly;

• Reinforce the importance of taking the emphasis off yourself and helping others,

• And motivate people to pay it forward.

I will accomplish all of this by putting God front and center (yeah, I said it).

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When I created my 101 List, I decided to dedicate it to God. I wanted to treat it like a gigantic thank you note to Him for allowing me to truly live an adventurous and amazing life.

This “adoption” project is another chapter in that thank you note. It’s about making my faith come to life.

In a recent sermon at church, the pastor stressed the importance of not just “talking at people about Jesus and the promise of God.” He encouraged members of the congregation to let their actions do the talking.

The sermon notes stated: “The way we live will show others that what we believe has life.”

Through this project, I want to inspire others to adopt this same mentality: A gigantic thank you note to God and a road map to truly live an adventurous and amazing life.

It all revolves around love and gratitude – the two things that have the power to change the world.

So....GAME ON!

It’s my pleasure to introduce three of the wonderfully great people who agreed to help me launch this project. (I’ll introduce the other three in a future post.)

I wanted to share a little about them, the task I’ve chosen to help them accomplish and their insight on this wild and crazy idea.

Jason Smith
Jason is a local business associate of mine that has become a friend over the last couple/few years. He has an entrepreneurial spirit and refuses to stop looking until he finds what he’s looking for in life. (I think that’s why we’ve become fast friends.)

He’s a TCU graduate (Go Frogs!) and he was born without a right hand. The ONLY reason I bring this up is because Jason wants to meet Jim Abbott, the former baseball player (right) who overcame the same disability to pitch in the Major Leagues.

I told Jason, who played baseball at TCU, that I’m going to use my contacts and resources to make this happen. I also told him that I think this has the potential to be a wonderfully great story.

When asked about where he’s at in life, Jason said: “Confused.”

“I’ve had some great accomplishments,” he explained, “but am without a clear direction for my career.” He hopes this endeavor helps him gain some insight on what he’s supposed to do next.

“I’ll also have a cool story to tell,” he added.

GAME ON!

Paige Rodges

Paige and I met each other when we worked together at J.O. Design. Confession: We worked together for almost 6 months before I realized how much of a kick-ass all-star she is. Smart. Funny. Tremendous perspective. Need a writer? This girl is quick, sharp and on-point. Everything she writes makes me laugh – EVERYTHING! (I’ve NEVER expressed that about ANYONE.)

I knew I had to “adopt” Paige based on her answer to this question: Are you an optimistic person?

I’ll paraphrase her answer: “Glass half full...BUT glass breaks...blood...hospital...doctor tells you that you have cancer...death.”

Wow!

Optimism, realism and tragedy collide in the same metaphor. (That’s hard to accomplish...unless you have a creative mind that is spinning out of the control like hers.)

The task I want to help Paige accomplish is easy: Take her husband, Barry, on a date to a dueling piano bar.

How am I going to help her accomplish this? That’s still a secret, but it’s super simple. (Reminder: Excuses. Flush. Metaphorical toilet.)

When asked to characterize this off-the-wall endeavor, she explained where she is at in life: “I’m trying to deconstruct and rebuild my outlook,” she said.

Then she quoted the book “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” by Donald Miller. She described the premise of the book by saying: "Set backs beat you down, and you have to regroup and decide to write a new story for yourself.”

GAME ON!

Will Berend

Will and I went to college together. We lived across the hall from each other in the dorms and were fraternity brothers. After all these years, we’ve kept in touch, even though he’s lived in Minnesota for almost 10 years.

I think we have the power of social media to thank for that.

Will and I are a lot alike. He recently sent out this update to family and friends – see if it sounds familiar:

“I wanted to send an update about my business Open Door Consulting. Due to several circumstances Anna and I have made the decision that it is time for me to look for a job. Please know that this is not a failure as the past year has gotten me ready for a new career and has provided the opportunity to make many valuable connections. I certainly was striving to make Open Door Consulting a serious contender in the social media consulting market, but the time has come for me to return my focus on finding a job to help provide more stability in our lives.”

Will lives boldly. I applaud that and love that about him.

I also love the fact that he’s embracing this opportunity with both arms.

“Some times I need a push and someone outside of my every day life to help provide a little more drive to do something different,” he explained. “On top of that, the last year has been a very interesting one for my family. We've learned that we must follow what makes us happiest. It's not always easy to do, but I'm going to take advantage of any opportunity that I’m presented.”

I’m actually going to help Will

cross two tasks off his life list:

• Go on a vacation with his wife alone

• Take his wife to New York City for the holidays

My wife and I are going to babysit his sons next December so they can jet off to New York. We’re also going to utilize some airline passes that my wife has to get them there.

Easy and doable, but potentially very impactful. (Again, just helping remove excuses.)

Will’s response to our offer reminded me of the potential power of this project. He said: “First of all, we accept. I can't believe what you're offering and I'm very thankful for how thoughtful you all are. I never expected this. THANK YOU!”

GAME ON!

En-Listed Opportunity Turns Into Life-Changing Experience for Two Runners

I’m starting to fall in love with the idea of helping people mark things off their life list. It’s taking everything narcissistic about creating a Bucket List – “me, me, me” – and turning it upside down – “you, you, you.”

It’s temporarily taking yourself out of the spotlight and helping someone else reach their hopes and dreams. It’s a completely unique and different way of giving back.

I love it!

I’ve shared this concept with several people, and I’ve gotten a fantastic response. The best yet came in the form of a text message I received last week from my friend, Mike. It said:

“In the spirit of helping people mark things off their list – going to Austin this weekend to run the marathon with a buddy’s visually impaired son. Pretty stoked.”

LOVE. IT.

Mike was asked to run with the young man after someone else had a last-minute conflict. Since he’s a running machine, Mike was able to knock out 26.2 miles on a whim.

That’s what I love the most about helping list makers – it’s an opportunity to use one of your skill sets and/or utilize your network base to assist someone. (It’s not about just bank rolling someone’s dream.)

That’s why I think this concept is so powerful.

Mike is a runner – an ultra-marathoner, to be completely fair and accurate – and he helped a 16-year-old young man who simply wanted to run.

For Mike it was a training run. For Brett Matlock it was a dream come true.

When I asked Mike about the experience, he said:

“The best part was doing a race that was not about me, which was something that I hadn't expected or experienced before. The joy on Brett's face through the whole race was an awesome reminder that it's important to enjoy the whole experience, and it's not just about the finish line.”

I don’t know Brett Matlock, but there isn’t a doubt in my mind that he’s a remarkable young man. He is the reason that this good story is wonderfully great!

And it’s not because he’s legally blind. It’s because he refuses to make any excuses AND his outlook on life is beyond his years. (The only thing that kept Brett from running a marathon before last weekend was the age restriction. He told Mike that he’d been waiting for this for 3 years. )

Brett never used his limited eyesight as an excuse when it was time to do his training runs – even the 15-milers he ran on a treadmill.

He never used his disability as an excuse when he was running the five half marathons before turning 16.

During an interview on an Austin news station, Brett offered some stoic advice: "Follow your dreams. Don't let anyone tell you you're crazy. Do what you want to do and just try your best at everything you do, no matter what it is."

Brett’s “best” is pretty impressive. He finished the marathon in 4 hours and 21 minutes, pacing right at 10 minutes per mile. He hit the metaphorical wall at Mile 25, but he pushed through.

He was ready for that moment, though, because this is what he told the news station prior to the race:

"I just say you have to push through the pain to obtain your goals...when someone feels pain whenever they're running, I say, 'Just block it out. Just go out there and do it again.' Pain ends and pride is forever."

Brett should be proud.

So should Mike.

Congratulations to both you guys!

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IF YOU LIKED THIS POST, CHECK THESE OUT:

• A Gift That Keeps on Giving
(story about Mike and his son's first birthday)

• Calling All List Makers: Game On!

• 'The List' Has Opened My Eyes

Calling All List-Makers: Game On!

Everyone has some sort of life list, right?

Call it whatever you want:

A Bucket List.

101 List.

If I Win the Lottery List.

Things I Want to Do Before I Croak List.

I can’t believe I feel compelled to explain this, but....

It's usually a list of big-ticket things you want to experience in your lifetime. Some of these lists are written on a cocktail napkin, while others are eloquently typed-up and uploaded to a fancy web site.

Again, it seems like everyone has one. Even anti-list makers have several unspoken "before-I-die tasks" mentally filed away.

The phrase “I should put that on my list” is totally accepted, understood and never questioned.

Some of these life lists have timetables. “Prior to death” is the hands-down winner, but I've also seen "before we have kids," "before I buy a house" and “before I’m forced to use a walker.”

My first life list was 101 things I wanted to accomplish in 1,001 days. (Confession: I’m the guy who
flamboyantly displayed
his online.)

Honda has even embraced this society-wide phenomenon with its new marketing campaign: Leap List. The concept, a CR-V can help you accomplish your goals before you whatever...celebrate your next birthday, settle down, etc. (So wonderfully brilliant!)

OK....the “What is a Bucket List?” tutoring session is officially over...quickly on to my point: I want to help people mark things off their list (kind of like the CR-V). I also want to write about the experience.

I mentioned this in a blog post exactly two years ago. The post referenced a VERY similar concept that MTV picked up and ran with – “The Buried Life.” I mused how I fiddle-farted around and let them “steal” my idea.

Update: The show has been cancelled, and I still think this is a tremendous way to connect with people, help them do something they’ve always wanted to do AND tell their story. (Again, I want to do it differently than they did on the show.)

How do YOU fit into all of this?

I’m ready to get started and I need your help. All you have to do is:

• Re-visit your life list (find it, write it down or dust it off);

• Attach it to an e-mail and send it to me;

• I’ll see if there is something I can help you mark off;

The only other request: Allow me to write about it (why was this on your list, what did it mean to mark it off, etc.).

Do NOT start making excuses before we even get started. The ONLY argument I’ll accept: “I don’t need anyone’s help.”

BUT as soon as those 5 ½ words enter your consciousness, you have to start attacking your list and marking tasks off. (Reminder: There is a reason these tasks still don’t have a line marked through them.)

Since this is an uncharted endeavor – I’m going to start slow. I will “adopt” the first six people who reach out to me.

Now, if you’re on board and don’t need anymore convincing – stop reading and send me your list. The accompanying message can be as simple as “Game on!” or “Let’s do this!”

If you’re on the fence, I want to share the premise of a book that changed my life: “Into the Wild” by John Krakauer. It’s a true story about a 20-something nomad named Chris McCandless, who hiked into the Alaskan wilderness and died. (I’m not ruining the book – it says that on the cover.)

Before his tragic and premature death, it was always about the next adventure for him. He wrote in one of his journals, “The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences.” During his last days, however – alone in an abandoned bus in the snow-covered wilderness – he made a note next to the following passage from "Doctor Zhviago."

“And so it turned out that only a life similar to the life of those around us, merging it without a ripple, is genuine life, and that unshared happiness is not happiness...”

In his dying days, Chris McCandless (right) realized that the experiences that he had were extraordinary, BUT they were meaningless because he didn’t get the chance to share them with someone else. Next to that passage, he wrote “HAPPINESS IS ONLY REAL WHEN SHARED.”

No one should suffer the same fate as Alexander Supertramp – the colorful alter ego that Chris McCandless adopted during his journeys. I’m not even referring to him dying in the abandoned school bus in Alaska. No one should mark the last task off his or her life list, look around and have no one there.

“Congratulations to me!” – highlighted by the deafening sound of silence and maybe the occasional chirping of a bored cricket.

Life is short. I’m sure your list is long. Let’s share an amazing experience TOGETHER.

Game on?