52 People

I was the best man at his wedding and gave the eulogy at his funeral. Experiencing the stinging pain of his death, I realized, that after spending over fifteen years together, my best friend died a stranger to me.
We are living with strangers.

I’m going to preface this by letting you know that I am not always a star gazing, hand holding love monster that always wants you to tell me about your dreams. I will talk about NFL or college football when ever given the chance. I will gather with friends every Sunday during football season and do nothing but sit, watch, eat and cheer as some of the strongest and fastest men in the world engage in gladiator like battle. There is nothing I want more than to do this, and any attempt to hold a conversation with me would be useless during this time. There are times and situations when small talk, or no talk, serves a purpose. Where the problem arises is when we rely on small talk to be the foundation of our relationships; it is a sneaky disease that we can take to the grave.

Aren’t you tired of boring, empty relationships? Scripted conversations on: the weather, sports, the economy, housing market, television, or anything else that fills space, are the feeble foundations on which our relationships are standing on. I don’t want to know what they do or what they know, but who they are and how they experience life. This is real.

Our time on this planet can end at any moment, the same as the person next to you and all those living under the same roof as you. We know this, yet we let our relationships slip through our fingers and allow ourselves to live with people we don’t REALLY know. We will grieve hard when people die, and the regret will burn deep inside. You can continue on this path, or you can change. There is something you can do right now to create more meaningful connection in your life. Get real with the people closest to you!

Approach someone to tell them how important they are to you, or to ask them about their illness, or what they’re greatest fear is; this opens the door to developing something with meaning. Talking about your truth and exposing your vulnerabilities are the ingredients for greatness in relationship. It does take trust, but that is built quickly through action. You may get hurt at some point in the process, but I’m certain you will recover and begin again. This is life. I will take the pain of rejection any day than carrying the regret of an unfulfilled relationship.

Relationships are EVERYTHING. They create meaning to otherwise dull moments, they make great experiences even greater and when you look back on your life you will remember the people you touched and those who touched you. You will relish those experiences of the exponential product that arises when two people lean into one another. This is life.

The depth of your life will be measured by the depth of your relationships. 
From the moment we are born we have a gift we all possess in equal sums. The gift to reach out and connect with ANYBODY. The richness of life awaits you. Connect with complete strangers, connect with acquaintances, but most importantly connect with the strangers that are closest to you.

The end of my best friends life was the beginning of great learning and the birth of a great movement. Now a great shift begins… It’s growth depends greatly on you… STOP LIVING WITH STRANGERS!

52 People’s – Crusade for Meaningful Connection
… things must change.

WHY JOIN THE CRUSADE?
We live in a society steeped in regret for lost relationship and a society experiencing the greatest famine never noticed. We are starving for more intimacy, more realness to our relationships. We have become a lonely people. Communities and tribes have broken off into a world of isolation. Now is the time to change it and you are the people to do it.

What I’ve taken from my year long experiment is that people are dying for connection, real connection, meaningful connection. What they need is for someone to take the lead.
It doesn’t matter where you are now with your relationships, how deep or surface based they are, what else can you do to make them better?

I have spoken with people who say, “This far into my relationships, things won’t change” or “I’ve been with this person my whole life, why would I try and change my relationship now?”.
My response… Why would you not? Everything is either growing or dying… do not let your relationships die. It is never too late. ‘The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago, the second best time is now.’ – African Proverb

The people in your life need YOU to take the lead by asking questions to expose the deep well of possibility that lies just beneath the surface. This crusade will help you learn how, and will be a collective resource for all situations – and create more meaningful relationships that create fulfillment within you. AND YOU are the person who can change it. YOU are just the person to take the lead, to take the first step towards creating something real and incredible with the people around you.
The time to act is now.

*I need your help. I believe we are all experts on relationship and I want to learn from your experiences. We are creating an army, a pool of resources that we can access to gain information or inspiration when it comes to deepening the relationships in our lives. We are creating an army that will inspire a movement of meaning.
We are running out of time. We are all dying. The people around us; our family, our friends, strangers… everyone. Our time on earth can end at any time, so we can’t afford to wait. We steep in regret when our loved ones pass away and we realize we never really knew them. We create an illusion that we will someday ask them the important questions, or have the meaningful conversations… but we run out of time. Stop waiting and take the lead.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead.


HOW TO CONTRIBUTE?

”A person’s success in life can be measured by the number of uncomfortable conversations and experiences she is willing to have.” Timothy Ferriss

The first thing you can do is write down all of the relationships in which you want more meaningful connection. Keep in mind, every relationship can expand.
Second: I challenge you to TAKE THE LEAD and create more meaningful connection with the people on your list. (An easy way to approach them is to say, “I stumbled across this interesting blog about this guy…”. Go from there and introduce the ten questions.)
Third: Write up your experience/s and email them to me at jayson@drivenbypassion.com and I’ll post them. Or, register for the blog and click on the title above the latest post and write your experiences or thoughts on the comment section.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY…
Enroll your friends and family to join! Let’s create an army of people taking the lead in creating more meaning in their relationships. The more conscious we become about our relationships, the greater depth our lives will have. Once we start breaking down the walls of assumptions and stop living on the surface, we step into a life of more meaning and fulfillment. This will transform the world around you.
Having deep, meaningful relationships adds exponential value to your life. To experience being fully present with the people around you is a precious gift that is worth fighting for.
GO forth and take the lead! Stop living with strangers and create more meaningful connection in your lives and watch the transformation take place in the world.

This Crusade is the beginning of something great. Great change can take place in our relationships; damage can be repaired, strong foundations can replace the shattered ones, good can become great and truth can be restored. Make the most of the time you have with the people around you, stop living with strangers, get real with the people around you and take the lead in creating meaningful relationships.

The Invitation- by Oriah

I want to know

if you can be alone 
with yourself

and if you truly like

the company you keep

in the empty moments.