IMPACT
Jim Henson, Dr. Martin Luther King, Steve Jobs, Rosa Parks, Amelia Earhart, Walt Disney, Jackie Robinson – all luminaries, all visionaries, all dreamers…
All individuals (note the word “individual”) who IMPACTED the lives of so many. Note again, that one individual can impact the lives of several others. All those beautiful souls named above continue to impact lives even today, and they will for generations to come.
Jackie Robinson’s epitaph reads “A Life Is Not Important Except in the Impact it Has on Other Lives.” These are more than just inspiring words for me and my family. We live by these powerful words, just as several others who are equally inspired by them.
I sincerely hope that by the end of this piece, you will understand and appreciate more deeply what it means to lead an impactful life. For those who already are doing that —Thank you! Keep going strong! Keep inspiring others!
For those looking to lean in, here’s an exercise. Find your own quiet personal space to conduct this exercise. Start by asking yourself:
- Am I impacting the lives of others?
- Which of my actions are creating the impact?
- Who are my actions impacting? (Note: No need to compare your actions with those mentioned above, who changed the world!)
- Is the impact positive or negative?
- What are the results of the impact?
This is not an easy exercise and definitely not one to be done casually, or just once. This is a living exercise, and you should continue to challenge yourself with it as a routine.
After completing the exercise, take a moment to reflect. Feels great, doesn’t it?
Now, take it to the next level.
- What are you doing in your professional life to impact others?
- What are you doing in your personal life to impact others?
It’s quite interesting to go through this exercise with your loved ones and friends. It’s highly rewarding to discuss these topics with people close to you, and you will walk away with a sense of having achieved something higher. You’ll start feeling that the contributions that you are making, even if very small, have an impact.
When you’re through with the exercise, take a moment to think:
- Am I focused on living a life of importance as inscribed on Jackie Robinson’s gravestone?
- Am I ‘positively’ impacting my life and the lives of others?
Are you? I believe you are! Now, go out there and continue to make an – IMPACT.
Michael S. Partnow is the Head of Wealth Management at JIFFY.ai. JIFFY.ai’s intelligent automation platform enables enterprises to build business applications that run their processes end to end. Using cognitive capabilities such as intelligent document processing, AI, RPA, ML and advanced analytics, these apps learn and adapt to changing situations impacting the business landscape, and even mimic human thinking and actions intelligently.
Contact Michael at [email protected]
