Sometimes you read something that just stops you in your tracks. It’s been awhile since I came across one of those posts but yesterday. Wow.
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/08/a-figment.html
Go read it. Seth Godin lays it out very short and simple.
Just in case you didn’t go, here’s the key:
No, the falling tree in the empty forest makes no noise, and your project or your brand doesn’t exist except as a figment in someone else’s imagination.
All we are is the story we take on. Father, friend, enemy, generous, jerk. It’s the story that others tell of us. Without those stories it doesn’t mean much. Are you the up and comer? The guy who just delivers? Are you the hardest worker? You can’t tell me because it isn’t yours to tell.
What you say doesn’t matter. What you do doesn’t matter. It’s the sum of the parts along with how others are impacted by it. The story of our lives is written by others. All we can do is try and shape it.