One Big Thing

Phil Howard Cooke

• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781595554857
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Personal Success

Named by Washington Post as one of the top five business books for 2012.

One Big Thing is about finding out what you were born to do with your life and how to use it to revolutionize your business or ministry—and change the world.

In a complex, multi-layered world, it's more difficult than ever to get your voice heard and to accomplish your dreams. To stand out today, you need to cut through the clutter and get noticed. Making that happen means to focus on the one thing in your life that drives you, inspires your passion, and separates you from the pack.

For everyone who's been pulled in different directions, born with multiple abilities, or just wondered what to do with their lives, this is the answer.Phil Cooke helps you not only discover that one big thing, but also teaches you the secrets of making an unforgettable impact with your life.

Named by Washingon Post as one of the top five business books for 2012.

Stop being average at so many things, and become extraordinary at One Big Thing.

What were you born to accomplish with your life? One Big Thing will help you discover what you were born to do and allow it to revolutionize your business, your ministry, and your life. In today's distracted, digital culture, it's harder than ever to identify your calling, get your voice heard, and achieve your dreams. To stand out and communicate your ideas and message, you need to cut through the clutter and get noticed. Making that happen means focusing on the one thing that drives you, inspires your passion, and separates you from the pack. If you've ever felt pulled in different directions or wondered what to do with your varied talents and interests, Phil Cooke will teach you the secrets of living a life-on-purpose that rises above the noise and leaves a lasting mark on the world.

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Chapter One

WHO’S PAINTING THE
PORTRAIT OF YOUR LIFE?
The Power of Intentional Living

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Every painter paints himself.

—CÓSIMO DE’ MEDICI, FLORENTINE STATESMAN

I was going to have cosmetic surgery until I noticed that the doctor’s office was full of portraits by Picasso.

—RITA RUDNER, COMEDIAN

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A great life doesn’t happen by accident. My wife, Kathleen, and I are regular visitors to the Huntington Library, Gardens, and Art Collection in Pasadena, California. Founded by Henry and Arabella Huntington, it is housed in the large Beaux Arts mansion (designed by architect Myron Hunt) they built shortly after the turn of the twentieth century; the home was transformed into a museum after Henry’s death in 1927. At the age of sixty Henry retired from his extensive business interests in order to devote time to his book and art collections and the landscaping of his six hundred–acre ranch on which the mansion stands in San Marino, near Pasadena.

Among other outstanding collections, the museum boasts an incredible hall of portraits called the Thornton Portrait Gallery. As I walked through the halls looking at the political, artistic, social, and military leaders featured in the portraits, I was gripped by a distinct sense of “intention” in their faces. These were leaders from another century who lived strategically and with purpose. They didn’t leave much to chance when it came to ambition and career goals.

Leaders of the nineteenth century were good at knowing their One Big Thing.

Walking through that gallery I realized that one of the key reasons these men and women were great was because they had discovered the power of focus. In today’s culture it might seem restrictive to guide a young man or woman from childhood into a career in law, politics, the military, or music. Certainly in those days the options for a woman or member of a minority were far more limited than today.

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But in the vast majority of cases, their lives were “designed” by their parents or their station in life. Few fought it, because at the time that was simply the way life was lived. They were all focused on One Big Thing. They had serious ambition, and lived lives of intentionality. As I studied the paintings of military generals, architects, writers and artists, business and government leaders, I wondered about the place of ambition in my own life. What would have happened had I lived my life more intentionally?

What could have happened if I had discovered my one thing sooner?

I wonder if today we’ve become the victims of a desire to just live life as it comes—to assume that whatever works out is the best path. Especially if you’re a child of the ’60s, living a random life sounds somewhat romantic, but real influence in the world doesn’t come at random. It rarely happens by accident. My father was a preacher from the South and had little knowledge of applying strategy to the art of living. As a result, I was well into my adult life before I even considered career planning or anything close to it. And by then it was pretty late.

Plus, coming from the Christian tradition as I do, it was actually frowned upon to take charge of our own lives. “Wait upon the Lord” was a refrain I heard a million times in church. We were encouraged to “seek His will for our lives,” and see where He took us.

Today I look back and realize just how naïve I was. While each of those phrases is true, they’re not referring to avoiding the hard work of discovering our place in this world. Jesus was a strong advocate of understanding the signs of the times and building upon a strong foundation:

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Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. (Matthew 7:24–27 NIV)

Without living strategically, our life could become a catastrophe. Walking through the Huntington Library’s portrait gallery these questions swirled around in my mind:

• What if from an early age, my parents had been looking for areas in which I excelled?

• What if they had focused my education to take advantage of those areas?

• What if my father had encouraged me to pursue a specific career?

• And even if I had picked it myself later, what if I had been more serious?

• What if I had pursued my goals with more conviction?

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” I’m told that quote is attributed to Abraham Lincoln, but hasn’t been officially confirmed or denied by historians. (Did President Lincoln actually use the word hustle?) But either way, I like it. In many circles today, ambition is an ugly word. But the truth is, what’s wrong with it? As long as it’s braced with humility, what’s wrong with planning, thinking ahead, and the desire to achieve something significant with our time on earth?

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To influence today’s culture, we need to have the experience, credentials, and relationships that only come by strategic living. Walking through that museum and staring up at those powerful portraits, I realized that great leaders of the past didn’t just take life as it came—they understood how to make life happen.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A JOB AND A DREAM?

One of my closest friends from high school has never discovered his one thing, and lives a life of misery. He began college with great excitement, but dropped out because he eventually lost interest. At one point he thought he wanted to be an actor, so he came to Hollywood. After a few years of failure, he took a class and became a real estate agent, but didn’t last long there. He married, but the stress of never finding the right job broke that relationship apart.

Today, in his mid-fifties, he’s working at a local coffee shop. Every day he reads the want ads, every day he scans the Internet for get-rich-quick ideas, and every day despairs of finding a dream he could call his own.

He’s always worked hard, but the difference between a job and a dream has never been more clear than in the life of my friend.

What about you?

Is it time to discover the difference between a job and a dream?

Is it time to start living with purpose, intention, and ambition?

Who’s painting the portrait of your life?

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Chapter Two

DO WE REALLY
HAVE A DESTINY?
Life’s Loaded Question

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You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.

—JACK LONDON, NOVELIST

If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up some place else.

—YOGI BERRA, BASEBALL LEGEND

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The issue of destiny is a loaded question. Nearly everyone wants to believe in the concept. Atheists may believe that there’s no God, no purpose, and no point to life, but it’s pretty tough living that philosophy out ...