How did the attacks on 9/11 change your life?

(Crossposted from www.insidewealth.net)

There are a lot of personal stories about 9/11. We all have them. I had acquaintances in the financial community who died that day. I had been in those buildings myself a dozen or so times in prior years.

For me, I received some life lessons that have changed my outlook on life and therefore my actions. And I continue to learn and unfold in this very moment as a result of the events on 9-11-01. Hopefully, I never cease to unfold.

Here were my takeaways:

1. It was only by the grace of God or sheer randomness that I was not in the World Trade Center that day. Or that I haven't died in some other act of terror or random accident so far. For me, it was a wake up call to put my life to greater use.

2. The unthinkable occurred. Right here on our soil. If something so horrible can occur, if human beings are capable of such disregard for human life and such hatred, then the spectrum of possibilities has been expanded.

So it occured to me, that if the diabolical is possible, then the opposite end of the spectrum must be possible as well.

Why not a world of global peace and unprecedented prosperity? If blowing each other up is a real possibility, then so is being of service to each other.

3. Don't take things for granted or give into "That's just the way it is" mentality. Everything we think is concrete (literally and figuratively) can go just like that. See through all the current structures as simply a moment in time.
Re-vision what can be.

4. I learned that we are all inter-connected... even more so through technology (both with respect to communications and ammunitions) than ever before. If people at the other end of the world place little value on life or if we place more value on money than on human life, it will affect us and them. We are both independent and inter-dependent.


5. I learned not to settle for anything less than what I know in my heart to be true. I had been living under the premise that I am simply one person - what can I possibly do to make the world more peaceful, more loving? Well, 9/11 showed me that the world can easily blow itself up or that we can live in a world dominated by fear and survival.

9/11 helped me to tap into my heart and know the truth that I have very little interest in survival. I want to thrive!!! And because we are inter-connected, that also means being of service to help others go beyond their survival needs, so they can thrive too!

6. To quote Nike, "Just go for it!" Hey, life is short... or certainly can be. I see the possiblity of a world that is loving, caring, repsectful and peaceful. What better way to spend my time on the planet? Yeah, I may not live to see all of it. I do know I can't necessarily rely on anyone else to do it all for me. And I also know, you get what you settle for.

What does all this mean? For me, it's simply a matter of priorities and where we place our attention, time, energy and money. I love being alive and thriving... don't you? What better way to live, than to have passion, purpose and bring joy to people?

If global peace and unprecedented prosperity were achievable in our lifetime, what role would you want to play?

So, I showed you mine... how has 9/11 affected you?

To our peace and wealth,

Stu