Mr. Joe Impact demonstrates a critical mistake people can make when seeking to make a difference in the world. Joe is very clear on the impact he wants
to make with his life. He is all about freeing girls from sex trafficking in Cambodia.
He has been very focused on this goal. In fact, he often buys coffee at Origin Coffee and Tea because a portion of each sale goes to that work in Cambodia.
He is personally responsible for setting four Cambodian girls free from sex trafficking. He has even traveled to Cambodia to see the work for himself.
He writes a blog to encourage other people who are passionate about the same issue, attends related events locally and helps with fundraising efforts.
Joe is very clear on the impact he wants to have. That’s great! He is making a serious difference in some lives.
However, there is a very important piece he has overlooked. Joe has failed to consider what impact he is having on the lives of people around him. In fact,
he has very much busied himself with living out his purpose and calling and has neglected his family, the people closest to him.
Joe’s wife is lonely. He comes home late at night and leaves early in the morning and they spend very little time together. He has broken many commitments
to his children: baseball games he didn’t attend, back to school nights where he didn’t show up, movie dates that never happened.
At work, in his role as a manager, Joe is also unaware of the negative impact he has on his coworkers. Joe often makes cutting remarks that tear people
down. He fails to recognize peoples efforts and takes undo credit for the work of others. Some people genuinely don’t like to go to work because of Joe
and the impact he has on them and the work environment.
Joe has made a common mistake. He has seen his calling as separate from his personal life impact. In fact, the impact we have on people is one and the
same. We should not separate out the deliberate positive impact and ignore the potential negative impact that we may already be having. Rather, we should
see our calling as an integral part of our personal life impact. It’s all about the impact we are having on other people, whether they are near to us or
far, family or friends, loved ones or strangers. No amount of deliberate positive impact on some people can wipe out an unintentional negative impact on
other people.
Have you considered both your impact on people that’s deliberate as well as your impact on people that you may not yet be aware of?
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