“Start with your one thing.”

A thought by John C. Maxwell (2015-10-06) from his book, Intentional Living: Choosing a Life That Matters (p. 61). Center Street. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title of the book to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

What is the one thing you do better than anything else? That is a good place to start in your trek in living a life that matters.

John says, “I believe everybody has one thing they do better than anything else. The right place to start is with your one thing. I learned this from my dad. In fact it was a Maxwell house rule when I was growing up. When we were kids, my dad’s message to my brother, sister, and me was to find your strength— your one thing— and stay with it. He never encouraged us to try to do lots of different things. He wanted each of us to do one thing exceptionally well. A long running joke in our family was that we felt sorry for multi-gifted people. How would they know which of their gifts to focus on?

He goes on, “In my eyes, my father became an exceptional man not because he was exceptionally gifted, but because he found his one thing and stuck with it. He was a great encourager. As a result, he rose to way above average. He mastered the art of encouraging others and never departed from it. Excellence comes from consistency in using our strengths, and Dad has been consistent.”

He then says, “If you start with just a single penny and double it every day for thirty-one days, you end up with $ 21,474,836.48. Personal growth is like that. Practice your one thing with excellence daily, and you will get a return. It’s like putting money in the significance bank.”

So what is that one thing that you do better than anything else? Go someplace quiet with your iPhone and go to your notes app and start answering that question. And then go find a friend you trust who has known you for awhile or a family member and ask them what they think is the one thing you do better than anything else. Of course start the time asking God to help you in finding what that one thing is. And when you find the answer then that is where you start.

So what is that one thing you do better than anything else?

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