Live Life, On Purpose!

I was just talking to Charles this morning about what we do and our vision for serving others (and hopefully making a living). He suggested that I flesh the idea of a continuum of health from trauma triage to Excellent Life. I think the best way to do that is to give you bits of my own life that illustrate the point better than definition and vocabulary.

The continuum goes something like this:
1. Triage. Stop the bleeding.
2. Prevention. Let's not have another traumatic meltdown.
3. Visioneering. What does abundance look like?
4. Excellent Life. Actively achieving and pursuing new visions and encouraging others to join the path.

Triage: Take a look at my account of a nasty eye injury:
My wife Sarah and I slept soundly. When I woke up early the next day, I began hurrying through my usual routine of coffee, breakfast and a few wake-me-up calisthenics, and then I hit the door running. I arrived on the jobsite earlier than usual. Good thing too; the unusually warm winter brought voluminous storm water. The small, temporary sump pumps would be struggling to keep up. I had to audibly command myself to not complain and just get the work done.

The generator in unit 83 ran out of gas during the night. The situation wasn't critical, but it did require immediate attention. I quickly sized up my options and began to execute my plan. I would relocate the two existing 100-foot extension cords from the side of the site to the property frontage, a fairly simple task even in the pre-dawn downpour.

After the first cord was quickly coiled, I groped in the dark for cord number two. In exactly the same manner as I just completed seconds earlier, I gave the cord an aggressive yank to free it from any debris that might inhibit its movement. What happened next was not a part of my hasty plan – darkness, intense pain and a warm jelly-like fluid on my left cheek. I had effectively bull-whipped my left eyeball with the business end of an extension cord.
This is a fairly dramatic example of acute physical trauma. Thankfully my wife and mother-in-law Cathy came to the rescue. However, now I was in a state of existential trauma:
The rest of the year was filled with three eye surgeries, sleepless nights, and a severe bout with depression. For the first time in my life I couldn't validate my life's value through performance. That's a tough pill to swallow for most men (and my service academy background certainly didn't help matters). I found out how weak I really am when left to my own strength. I couldn't even read a computer screen or read a book without my right eye coming out of focus (a side effect of adjusting to monovision.) I thought my biggest problem was my visual performance barrier, but I was wrong.

In August I received a lens/iris implant which dramatically improved my visual acuity. All the circumstances surrounding the surgery were pretty amazing. Only two doctors in the United States were conducting research studies on the experimental material. The surgeon who performed my surgery is the world-renowned leader in cornea research, and just happens to be located on 82nd Street in Indianapolis. The eye implant surgery, although successful, did not solve all of the emotional problems that surfaced over the course of the year. I knew something in my heart would have to change or life would be an emotional roller coaster. After all, wasn't my faith supposed to help keep joy in my heart?
You see. Now that the physical trauma was healed I was still dealing with the emotion and spiritual crisis of my identity. My spirit wanted healing.

Prevention:
Wear eye protection! That's a no-brainer. But what about my heart and the condition of my soul. What if I got cancer? What if Sarah got hurt. How the heck could I possibly handle another traumatic event if I didn't have the integrity (courage to face reality--thanks Dr. Cloud)? This time in my life represented a cross roads. I needed to make a decision. How, then, should I live?? What is it I really believe? Do my attitudes, thoughts, and behavior align with one another?

Visioneering:
I decided that I would chose to identify myself with how I serve others. I quit my job and started a career as an exercise instructor. Finally, my values, behaviors, and profession were beginning to align. This process doesn't stop. It will continue as long as I draw breath.

Excellent Life:
Service through excellence. I maintain a constant network of relationships and feedback that keep me on track. I know when my workouts need altered: I measure my strength, I know when to tighten up my nutrition: I evaluate my energy level and body composition, I know when relationships are out of alignment: I'm aware of others' feelings. Data gathering, analysis, deliberate goal setting, and a connection to the transcendental are pivotal elements of Excellent Life. Also, characters of excellence bring others along. An orientation toward growth means I'll bump in to like-minded people as we walk the path together. It's not accidental. It's the way we're designed to live.


What do you think? Does that continuum make sense? I imagine that certain aspects of your life are approaching Excellent Life, but I bet some areas are in need of emergency triage. I'm aware of several areas of my life where my growth is obviously lopsided. That's ok. I'm sure as I grow closer to my vision of Excellent Life that new areas of growth that I wasn't even aware of will become apparent. That's the journey. That's why I created this network and that's how I hope to serve others.

Respectfully,
JC

Jamar, if you're interested in hearing more I encourage you check out our group at www.yourexcellentlife.net. Thanks for the encouragement!