Have you ever seen a really great movie that pulled you in emotionally? I mean the kind of movie you find yourself thinking about the next day.
I mean the kind of movie where, if given the chance, you just might step through the screen and enter that world so you could fight for the characters you came to care about.
It could also be a really good fictional novel that tugs at your heart and emotions in a very real way.
One of the reasons this happens is because we can easily see the meaning in a story that is presented in a concise package.
Good movies build your emotional involvement by painting a picture of life events that unlock a pattern of meaningfulness.
It could be the gradually unfolding beauty of Pandora from Avatar that causes you to see the meaning for the characters who risk everything to defend Pandora.
It could even be the thieves you find yourself rooting for in a movie like Ocean’s Eleven, or The Italian Job. Why do you root for thieves?
Because the story unfolding in the movie connects with the part of your brain that seeks out meaningfulness. You begin to understand the character’s perspective and you begin to root for their wellbeing without any conscious decision to do so.
Sometimes this effect is VERY powerful.
Great leaders throughout history have moved people to action in ways that would never have been possible if they had skipped to the battle cry before first setting up the story to tap into the meaning that drives so much of what we do.
The Life Modification system is all about tapping the powerhouse of your mind in service of your goals and a life of full engagement.
We try to teach you to leverage your mind in unusual ways, unusually powerful ways.
One of the ways to tap a deep well of meaning and purpose is by digging up your own life story, dusting it off, and embellishing it a little (like they do in the movies) to create a fantastic story that unearths the geyser of motivation, strength of will, and purpose that flows from the deep well of a meaningful story.
Not sure if your story is really all that meaningful? Try this:
- Make a short list of things that matter to you, things you would fight for no matter how hard it gets. You might list your children and their wellbeing, your true calling in life, your freedom and your right to be treated with respect, or more specific things like your desire to finish college or your decision to become independently wealthy by bringing more value into the lives of others through your business or profession.
- Now list some of the hardships you have experienced in life. Think of things that have held you back from your full potential or things that have stopped you from succeeding to the degree you would like. It could be things as simple as procrastination or things as complicated as a battle with cancer.
- Now picture yourself standing in the back of a crowded lecture hall where people are seated facing a podium. Listen to the speaker describing the story of your life to the hundreds of people seated in the room. (For some reason Harrison Ford gets the speaker roll in my imagination.) Hear the speaker’s voice echoing around the room as he speaks into a microphone, describing the things that you are trying to accomplish and the things that have gotten in your way. Now hear him describe your worst enemy to date, the one that has the power to crush your dreams entirely and wipe out the force of your will and purpose. Do you know what that enemy is? Listen to him explain it to the captivated audience, “She is losing her belief in the meaningfulness of her goals. She has been unconsciously slipping toward a belief that her life doesn’t matter, that she can never really succeed at doing anything of true value.”
This time you can slip across the screen and change the ending to the story. This is the story of your life, and you get to write the ending. Do you decide that your life is meaningless, or do you decide to create meaning by choosing to treat your own life and your own choices like they actually matter? Modify your life. Start by remembering the things that matter in your personal story.
Dr. Todd Snyder
