MMM 39 - The Mission Comes First - No Excuses!
Drawing on inspiration from “Way of The Superior Man”, Jeddy hits on why a mission and vision are so important to identify and live from, why it needs to come FIRST, and how to handle our loved ones testing our commitments. If there is one topic at the core of men’s work, this one is it. It’s a large subject, one that we touch on in almost every episode. But today, we GO IN on the topic, and it’s relevant to wherever you are in the process.
Show Notes:
The first reflections I ever had about becoming a man occurred when I read “The Way of the Superior Man” by David Deida
- If you haven’t read this yet, stop what you’re doing and get the book, audiobook, whatever and dig in
- Simple synopsis of many of the challenges we ALL face as men…because we’re not unique
I read this book when I was 20 years old, and, honestly, not that much landed the first time through. Certain aspects about masculinity vs. femininity, how to show up for a woman, and living life on my terms started to peak my interest…but the excerpts about MISSION and FAMILY went straight over my head at that time. My 2nd read-through, when I was preparing for marriage and a family, had a much different impact on me.
- Chapter 11 – If you don’t know your purpose, discover it now!
- Chapter 13 – Don’t use your family as an excuse
One of the HARDEST pieces for me to digest was placing the mission FIRST above everything else in my life.
- Really? More important than my children? My relationship? My parents?
- YES! – this wasn’t a suggestion to ignore these important people and relationships in my life
- It was an invitation to see how taking care of my essential mission as a man WAS IN FACT taking care of them as well
- It was hard to appreciate this until I became clear on what my mission in this life was
- To be honest, it’s still an ever-evolving journey – Mission and VISION are not fixed properties
If you don’t know how to find your mission in life, a great place to start is with a ceremonial rite of passage (vision fasting, traveling solo, walkabout, etc.)
- The spirit of EXPLORATION is needed to discover why we are here and what we will apply our life juice towards
- This is why we offer programs like Elements and Compass, to initiate men into the process of discovery and deepening into clarity of mission, vision, and purpose
Once you’ve gotten clear on why you are here, which way YOUR compass is pointed, it is IMPERATIVE that you allow NOTHING to get in your way
- TESTING – everything in the world will test you
- The artfulness of manhood is learning how to take care of our mission and everything else in our lives, to be in the dance of one domain of life into the other, with ease and style
- It’s not EASY, and we can enjoy ourselves in the process
TAKE ACTION
- If you have NO CLUE what your mission, vision, or purpose is, I encourage you to join us for our next Elements 3-day Wilderness Initiation or Compass, our 12-week program with Vision Fasting as the central component
- We will be offering these again later this year, after baby time for me
- In the meantime, take 20 mins. this week to sit and reflect on WHAT is the impact you want to have on this planet before you go
- Let it flow, don’t get TOO specific and lost in the details
- Imagine the RESULT you want to see when you leave this life
- If you’re already clear on your mission/vision/purpose, then take the same 20 mins. and reflect on all of the different people, tasks, THINGS in your life that TEST your commitment to your mission
- Identify what they are, how they show up to test you, and how you typically respond
