By: Ryan Husband
If you stand for everything, you stand for nothing.
This is the fundamental premise behind our Stand Collection and the reason we created it with its message. Today's world has made it easy to slide under the radar with little regard for our personal beliefs, mission, work ethic, and the quality of the people we surround ourselves with. This is a world that creates our beliefs for us, shoves them down our throats, and manipulates us via social media, news, and other domains until we adopt them ourselves. Then they shame us for thinking differently. The importance of standing for something couldn't be greater than it is now, and there are four important questions to ask yourself when developing deep roots for what you stand for:
1.) What do I believe in?
2.) Why am I here?
3.) How will I show up?
4.) Who will I show up for?
Your Belief: What Do I Believe?
Your beliefs represent the foundational aspects of your life; they are the framework that dictates your purpose, your work ethic, and the community you surround yourself with. Your beliefs are your faith and convictions. Without beliefs, you'll find yourself running in a hundred different directions, making random decisions with no moral compass for the direction to go. This is the exact opposite of "Standing for Something." Without a moral compass, you won't know where to go or how to get there. To Stand for Something, you must decide on your beliefs and have justification for why you believe what you believe. Think long and hard about this because it will dictate the outcome of your life. It's important not to adopt the beliefs of others just to fit in; dig deep into your beliefs and hold them as your firm foundation for the rest of your decisions. In this week's Prescription Podcast, I share my belief and how I use it to build the foundation of my life.
Purpose: Why Am I Here?
Your personal mission will be based on the foundation of your beliefs. Once you have your beliefs set, you'll be able to build a strong purpose, and your purpose will drive you to make decisions about how you show up and who you show up with. Purpose isn't one size fits all, and it can be formed of a few different things, and it can mold and change in different seasons of life. Your purpose can be your work, your family, your belief in God, your service to others, and more. Whatever it is, find it, write it down, and pursue it unapologetically. Your purpose will give your life and give you meaning, giving you a reason to wake up and make life the best you can. A life lived for nothing is not a life well-lived; a life lived for something gives your life meaning.
Work Ethic: How Will I Show Up?
Now that you understand the importance of knowing what you believe and why you're here, you'll know how to show up. Standing for something will be challenging. In standing for something, you have to be relentless in the face of adversity, and you have to be willing to put in the work. How you show up will dictate outcomes and will also dictate the quality of the life you live. If you show up with lazy effort or low energy to the task at hand, it's likely you don't have conviction in your beliefs or in your purpose. Standing for something means showing up, working hard, and always seeking to be the best version of yourself for your beliefs, your purpose, and the people around you.
People: Who Will I Show Up With?
Standing for something is about deciding who your people are. Surrounding yourself with belief-oriented, mission-driven, and hard-working individuals will lead the way to a better life. This will serve as accountability to your beliefs, your purpose, and the work you put in. Imagine showing up to war alone; you'll lose. But if you show up to battle with hundreds of other like-minded and hard-working individuals fighting for their beliefs and their purpose, you have a higher likelihood of winning. In the Bible, it says, "He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither, in all he does, he prospers." The prosperity and blessing come from being a tree planted by water, where its roots can grow deep. This is the same with our relationships and friendships. If we plant ourselves by water, where our relationships are plentiful, we'll live a higher quality of life, and it will be easier to stand for something. If we plant ourselves in the desert, the likelihood of success in our mission will be lower.
Standing for something is essential in today's world where external factors can easily sway our beliefs and values. By determining our beliefs, purpose, work ethic, and community, we can develop deep roots for what we stand for and live a life of meaning and fulfillment. While standing for something may be challenging, it is ultimately rewarding and necessary for personal growth and success. So let us take the time to reflect on what we stand for and make the conscious decision to live a purpose-driven life.