Okay, so maybe it’s not a secret, but it sure felt like a secret to me until I came to the sudden, exciting realization about it. I had experienced it before in my life, but it never came right out and made itself obvious to me. It applies equally to work life, personal life, and virtually any facet of life. It is attainable by anyone, and there are few, if any, barriers keeping this secret from becoming a powerful force in your life. In fact, most people, including myself, are the biggest single reason for failing to take advantage of this well-known “secret.”
Why are some people forever remembered, while others are quickly forgotten? Why do certain individuals thrive while others languish? How can common, ordinary, average folks rise above the overwhelming tide of daily tedium?
The answer is going to make you feel like kicking yourself, while simultaneously giving you hope for a brighter tomorrow:
“OUTPUT”
Entire days, weeks, or months of my life have unfortunately gone by without producing meaningful OUTPUT. Everyone’s definition of output is unique to their own talents. As a musician, I am capable of composing and performing songs to become one form of output. As a communicator, I am capable of writing letters, emails, articles, or how-to guides to share with loved ones, coworkers, or the general public. As a speaker, I am capable of sharing verbal essays of my experiences. You see where I’m going with this….
Output takes countless forms. The form of your output, while important, is not as critical as simply taking the steps and doing the work to create the output. As a person who only recently realized the significance of output in my life, I spent years without producing anything of value. I failed to take advantage of dozens of the opportunities I had to output my music, my writing, my creative spawn. There were spontaneous moments in which the situation called for output, and I delivered. I wrote letters to people that changed the course of my life. I composed and performed love songs that brought tears to the eyes of my lover. The problem: I didn’t understand that it was the output that was responsible for the leverage I was able to generate by simply not keeping it inside my mind. Getting the ideas out of my brain and into palpable forms made them infinitely more powerful. The toughest part was getting started!
Perhaps the ultimate lasting output is Mount Rushmore. Completed in 1941, it was the culmination of 14 years of intense work by sculptor Gutzon Borglum, who died before its completion by his son Lincoln Borglum. The names are not always remembered, but the OUTPUT cannot be forgotten.
Of course the majority of human output is not quite so ambitious, but the importance of each person’s output is no less significant to them and those in their sphere of influence. Gigantic mountainside carvings may not mean a lot to you, but the odds are you will remember when you receive a heartfelt handwritten letter from one of your favorite people. Like Mount Rushmore, even decades later, this type of output survives to remind you of the situations, thoughts, and feelings that inspired its creation.
Whether you’re painting masterpieces, composing symphonies, designing buildings, crafting furniture, sewing quilts, writing novels, or just writing articles for Medium, remember that it’s the output you produce that offers lasting meaning to your life and your life’s work, and provides the opportunity to share that meaning with others around you.
My name is Nate Hill and this is my first article written for Medium. Enjoy…
