How to Be Exceptional
It’s not about power or privilege
We need more exceptional people in our world. Would you like to be one of them? If so, I’ve got good news and bad news.
The good news is that being exceptional — really, truly exceptional — isn’t about power or privilege. It’s not about wealth or even health. It’s not about fame or fortune. It’s about what’s inside of you.
The bad news is that it costs you to be exceptional.
Few people are exceptional these days. Those who are are the ones who have paid the price. What is that price?
I’ll let Brant Hansen, author of one of my favorite books, explain:
War is not exceptional; peace is. Worry is not exceptional; trust is. Decay is not exceptional; restoration is. Anger is not exceptional; gratitude is. Selfishness is not exceptional; sacrifice is. Defensiveness is not exceptional; love is.
(Hansen, Brant. Unoffendable: How Just One Change Can Make All of Life Better. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2015)
To be exceptional means you push back against your human nature and the natural tendencies of the world around you. To be exceptional is to rise above the fray and to reject mediocrity. It’s to discipline yourself to be better than your base instincts. To stand out from the rest.
