There's No "Help Others" Section

I was listening to The Diary of a CEO podcast yesterday.

Simon Sinek was the guest, but this time, the interview was not what you would expect it to be. Sinek came onto the show as a means to talk openly about some big changes that are happening in his life. He spoke openly about his decision to transition careers and the fear he is feeling around the decision.

He also spoke openly about how lonely he has been feeling.

I encourage you to listen to the episode to get the full story.

In the interview, Sinek said something that stood out to me.

He was speaking about loneliness and about how our society tries to solve for loneliness by “helping ourselves.” We read self help books and we try to improve ourselves.

But we have it backwards. The way to solve loneliness is to help others.

The line that stood out to me was “we have a self help section in the book store, but we need a help others section.”

I instantly thought of my recovery, and A.A. meetings, and Sober Nation.

One of the reasons why Sober Nation was so successful was because it was entirely dedicated to helping others. It wasn’t intentional, rather it started out that way because I was desperate for connection. I was writing into the abyss in hopes that someone out there would hear my desperate plea.

I was so incredibly lonely when I started Sober Nation. I was lost and alone. Almost by accident, my writing start connecting with people and suddenly I was getting messages from folks all across the world who related to my story and were relating to what it was I was saying.

There was nothing more to it then that. It was a beautiful experience. It changed everything for me.

I need to be better at this and be more mindful of incorporating acts of service into my life.

I need to remember to help strangers.. This way of thinking is a win / win for everyone, because the act of service helps me just as much as it helps the person in need.

I need to be better at getting out of my own head and focusing how I can contribute to the world.