Steps to a Great Story

As you probably read on Monday, I’m on this journey to write a great story with my life. I don’t want to be the kind of person who settles for just ok. I want to live an exciting life, one full of risks and trials and triumphs and love and loss and excitement and adventure and…

Well, let’s just say I want my life to be the kind of story I could get lost in.

I think most of us do.

We want to know our lives mattered. That somehow, we made an impact. Changed someone’s life. Made a mark on this world. And showed people what it means to be truly alive.

And while most of us have great ideas and visions and plans for what we want to do in our lives, for what our stories could look like…

It’s not so easy to live those stories out.

I don’t know about you, but it’s pretty easy for me to get caught up in my normal routine.

You see, I am a creature of habit. I find myself getting into a routine, doing the same thing day in and day out, and it’s pretty hard for me to break it. Every morning, I wake up, eat breakfast, brush my teeth, shower, crawl back into bed and do some reading, get dressed, make my coffee and head out the door. At night, I come home, eat dinner and do the same thing each week. If it’s Monday – I work on Ignite stuff. If it’s Tuesdays, I’m either in a meeting or working on my web site. If it’s Wednesday, I’m either at the Ignite Monmouth gathering or small group. If it’s Thursday, I’m doing laundry and watching TV. There are even times I’ve noticed myself wearing the same clothes on the same day each week.

I find comfort in my routine.

I like knowing what to expect. I like having some sort of control over my life. I like the comfort of getting into a routine. The only problem is…

Routines don’t really make for great stories.

So how do we start writing amazing stories with our lives? How do we go from our normal, mundane routines to the kind of stories people want to read about?

I’m not quite sure.

But I know a great story doesn’t just write itself. It takes work. Hard work. Dedication. Struggle. Pushing through when you want to give up. Stepping out when you want to shrink back. And sacrifice to keep yourself focused.

So here is a list of things steps I’m taking to try and write a great story with my life:

• Start at the end to give me some direction and know what I’m aiming for.
• Try something new each week, even if it’s just changing up my morning routine. I don’t want to get stuck in doing the same thing day in and day out, and watching my life pass by without any excitement.
  
• Get involved in community beyond my college ministry. I love my students, but I need a place to just be me, not a leader.
• Take a trip with Living Water International, and help change the story of an entire community in a third world country.
• Step out and do what’s in my heart, regardless of whether or not I fail. All great stories include high risks of failure. If I’m not taking a risk that I will fail, I’m not really living.
• Come up with a vision statement for my life, and cut out anything that doesn’t fit within that vision.
• Make a bucket list and commit to doing one thing each year.
  
• Write out my ideas, and come up with goals to see them happen.
• Find a coach/mentor who has been there before and can help me get where I’m going.
• Never, ever give up. It’s going to get hard, it’s going to be tough. There are going to be times I want to throw in the towel, but if I keep pushing, I will write a great story with my life.

What can you start doing today to change the kind of story you are writing?