Ambition
Go Big or Go Home
Starting Over
These are the three themes of the re-launch of my 12 Projects in 12 Months. I first published this list back in June 2011 with great gusto and ambition. But as the months went on this soon gave way to a lack of motivation, or what is more accurately defined as laziness. Caught up in the whirlwind of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, and my innate desire to sit on the couch watching American sitcoms I failed in my first attempt to take action on these 12 Projects.
But with a New Year comes new opportunities. Every day is an opportunity to start again. Yes, you may fail once – or even many times – but failure should not mean that you give up. Once you give up on your dreams, you give up on your life. The shame is not in the failure, the shame is in giving up. That is why I have chosen to start over today. I believe in this project, and 2012 is the time for us all to begin taking action towards realising our dreams.
I have been reading a lot of wonderful personal development blogs these past few months, and the one that has stood out the most is the Tyler Tervooren’s Advanced Riskology and his 1% Club. Essentially, the 1% Club is an ambitious list of experiences and projects that only 1% of the world’s population will ever achieve. Tyler is creating an amazing community of people who are getting out in the world, pushing the boundaries and truly experiencing life. I have drawn inspiration from his approach and today I am re-launching the 12 Projects in 12 Months initiative.
12 Projects in 12 Months is a road-map for spreading the Our World message and taking active steps to making this world a better place. Because, at the end of the day, writing alone can never compare to taking direct action.
The 12 Projects
Some of these are big, some of them relate more to me on a personal level. Each is selected with a view towards making a small difference towards the world we live in.
1: Write the Our World Manifesto, a guide to living life true to the philosophy of Our World, that this is Our World to live, Our World to design, and Our World to share.
2: Commit to writing at least one article for Our World each week during 2012 touching on the themes of Humanity, Personal Development, and Economic Development.
3: Continue to make loans through Kiva.org (see article here), and develop a $1,000 Our World community lending fund.
4: Eliminate all household waste through recycling and smart purchasing.
5: Research and locate sustainable clothing manufacturers/sellers from whom to purchase new clothes. (For example, see the work being undertaken by the ladies over at All of Us Revolution.)
6: Identify, and undertake, 50 different methods of helping out and making a difference in my local community.
7: Develop an online forum to debate ideas relevant to the Our World mission and to generate action at the local level.
8: Develop and further experience meditation as a way of achieving inner peace and removing any potential negative energy that I might generate from the shared consciousness.
9: Open my home to couchsurfers and share in this great tradition of meeting new people and experiencing new cultures.
10: Learn to speak Māori so as to better serve my clients and help bridge the divide that sometimes exist between Māori and non-Māori in New Zealand.
11: Learn to speak German, the native language of my girlfriend and her family. Language can be the doorway to a deeper understanding of people and communities.
12: Establish a community lending organisation to assist Maori landowners in unlocking the economic potential of their land. This project has long been a passion of mine and this is the year to set about making it happen. For a brief background analysis of the problem, see my comments over at Māori Law and Politics. And for an overview of my earlier research on this you can download this paper.
This project is my way of making a difference in 2012. What is yours?
