I recently came across a famous Quaker saying that took my breath away. “Let your life speak.” It seems an apt philosophy for people in the non-profit sector.
In one moment, I knew I had found the embodiment of something I've felt and tried to do for as long as I remember. Every choice we make, every action we take... or do not take... conveys a message. From the clothes we wear and cars we buy, to the food we eat and vacations we take, to our friendships and vocations, we are letting the world know what we think is worthwhile.
Many people go through life without consciously thinking about the message they are presenting the world about their values; this is perhaps not a bad way to live (it is certainly an earnest way), but it is not what I want to do. Other people know all to well the importance of conveying messages, so they communicate loudly, self-righteously their intentions. But their spoken messages and their behavior can be sadly misaligned. That, I do not want either.
I want my life to sing. I know I will not manage to do this every moment of every day... I know if I stopped to reflect on it, I would not care for what my life was saying much of the time. But I think that an awareness of the fact that my life is speaking gives me the opportunity to be a better person.
Though the thought is probably not framed quite that way, I think many people in the non-profit sector know that their life is speaking. Knowing that it is saying an important thing-- the right thing-- at least part of the time, is one of the reasons we do what we do. And we rarely have to stop to explain why, like I am doing now, because our actions are saying it for us.
