So many of us want to put the world’s problems into a hierarchy.
We ask ourselves…
Which problems are most pressing?
Which are most important?
Which are most causing the most damage?
Which are the easiest and fastest to fix?
Where do we get the most bang for our buck?
There’s nothing inherently wrong with creating a hierarchy. After all, the problems of the world can seem vast and overwhelming. Creating a hierarchy is a way we can make sense of our own efforts and actually put a plan in place to make change.
Without a hierarchy, or some sort of organization, it may feel daunting to even begin to tackle some of the world’s problems.
The issue, however, lies in using that hierarchy to place judgment.
Maybe we place that judgment on ourselves, and we start to believe that our work isn’t making a difference. We start to doubt our contribution, and we get frustrated and lose steam.
Or, maybe we project that hierarchy onto others…
“My cause is more important than your cause”
“My cause deserves more money than yours”
“Your work isn’t as valuable as mine”
Instead of actually tackling our problems, we argue and procrastinate.
The truth is… there’s beauty and necessity that lies in the fact that everyone is drawn to different problems. Each one of us feels a different pull to change the world for the better.
And, in reality, the problems of the world are immeasurably interconnected. Tackling one will create ripples that will help to tackle the others.
If you invest your time and money in clean water initiatives, women and girls in third world countries will have more time to devote to education, work, and business. So, the overall quality of life for the community improves.
If you purchase a piece of art from a local art fair, you support that artist in her craft. She is then able to support her family, who are raised to value art, and grow up to be expressive, whole human beings.
If you spend your time writing really great children’s books, you encourage kids to read and inspire free-thinking and creativity in our youngest generation.
If you use your money to travel the world, you support airlines, hotels, restaurants, and that young woman waiting tables trying to put herself through college. As you travel, the tourism economy grows, your world view is broadened, and you create international friendships that shape who you are and who your children become.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a bank teller, an app developer, a dog walker, a preacher, or the founder of an international non-profit.
It all helps.
It all works.
It’s all good.
Your hierarchy, and your system for organizing and valuing the world’s problem is just that… your own.
Keep doing your thing. Keep changing the world in your own way. Whatever you feel called to do, it makes a difference. And, so does the work of others.
There’s beauty, balance, and enormous progress in the variety of it all.
Humans are designed to be different and to create unique, positive change. And, it’s a true blessing that we all have different hierarchies, and that we are all called to make our own way.
We need your ideas, we need your work, and we need your art. Never stop valuing your contribution.