MEANINGFUL FUNNEL
A practice of beginning with the end in mind starts, in this case, at the bottom of a funnel. What is coming out of the funnel represents what you would like your legacy to be. The label at the bottom of the funnel, therefore, is your "ultimate life," your legacy, what you would like to leave. Fortunately, only three other points exist in the Meaningful Funnel. The first point is your "intention," the second point is "self-care," and the third point is your "contribution."
In working backwards, you gain tremendous clarity regarding your intention. The Meaningful Funnel focuses on the conditions that must be met to make sure your funnel has integrity, meaning that what you put into the funnel (your intention) organically manifests what you would like to come out of the funnel, your ultimate life. The funnel ensures that no conflict exists within it, that what you put into it directly supports what you would like to come out of it. Interestingly, the two middle points, "self-care" and "contribution," play a significant role.
The name "meaningful" or "meaningfulness" are used interchaneably regarding the funnel. The purpose of using either of those terms is to be certain that your process is meaningful for you as well as others. Let's fully unpack that. For you to leave the kind of legacy you would like to leave, your life would have to make a positive impact on others, meaning it would have to be both engaging and meaningful for others. Never lose sight of that point, the third point of the funnel, your contribution. If your contribution is meaningful for others, you can be certain that what is coming out of the funnel represents your ultimate life, your legacy. If your contribution is not meaningful for others, you are not satisfying the conditions necessary to ensure that you are leaving the kind of legacy you would like to leave, which defines whether or not you are living your ultimate life.
The only other point along the Meaningful Funnel is the second point, self-care. Why self-care? Self-care is the ultimate bridge between your "intention" and the "contribution" you make to others. If the contribution you make to others is indeed meaningful for them, how do you make certain it is also meaningful for you? Self-care does the trick by looking at what excites you, enlivens you, juices you, makes you enthusiastic. If you are meeting those conditions, meaning you are indeed juiced, excited, enthusiastic, enlivened, rest assured, you are providing great self-care, meaning what you are doing is meaningful for you. Can you see by addressing what is meaningful for others (your contribution / the third point) and addressing what is meaningful for you (self-care / the second point), you gain tremendous clarity regarding what your intention must be? That first point, your intention, is what goes into the funnel. Clarity regarding that point is necessary for the funnel to be whole, cohessive, congruent, coherent. This means that what you put into the funnel does not conflict with what you’d like to come out of it, your ultimate life, the fourth point.
If your intention has juice, meaning it excites and enlivens you, you are enthusiatically providing great self-care. When that juice and self-care impacts others positively, you are meeting the conditions of making the kind of contribution that is actually impactful for others, thereby ensuring that you leave the legacy you would like to leave. Working backwards with the Meaningful Funnel ensures integrity between whatever you are doing (your intention) and what defines your ultimate life. Is there a natural flow? Does your intention juice you? If so, you are providing self-care in making sure it is meaningful for you. Is it engaging others? If so, you are making sure it is meaningful for others. The only result, therefore, can be that you are successful in living your ultimate life, leaving the kind of legacy you would like to leave.