Bettering the world around you

We’ve arrived at our third and final tenet – leave the world better than you found it.

I originally wrote this as “make the world a better place.” I think that phrasing is too broad, a bit cheesy, and hyperbolic. Making the world a better place, I now realize, sounds a bit too much like a tagline for Greenpeace or Oxfam (both worthy causes, btw).

So, like I’ve done many times and will likely continue to do, I borrowed a concept from a cherished passion of mine: event production.

For the last fifteen years I have had the privilege of producing endurance and entertainment experiences with High Five Events, the largest privately owned production company in Texas. Before any produced event, our staff revisits the “Top Ten List” – a set of guidelines that ensure a memorable, elevated, inspired experience for our participants.

An homage to the late-night legend David Letterman, this list includes rules like “Safety is our first priority” and “Everyone is a customer” and a personal favorite, “If you can lean, you can clean” – a good reminder for anyone: when there are copious tasks to complete, you better not get caught resting unless it’s your designated time to do so.

The tenth and final line item is broad, yet specific: “Leave the site better than we found it.” Whether we’re in downtown Austin or far from home, you can bet that every piece of equipment is loaded and every last bit of trash is picked up before we’re gone. In a more symbolic way, that’s the impact I hope to create in this world.

Each day I remind myself to do something good for someone or something. Holding doors open, picking up trash, smiling at strangers, being kind to animals, volunteering, donating to charity, complimenting coworkers, paying for someone’s coffee… These and others are easy and effective ways we can scratch the itch of altruism.

Just think, if everyone did this, this world truly would be a better place.