Relevance. What makes us relevant? I believe something very special connects us together as humans: the desire or deep wanting to find our significance. The ethereal human identity that gives each of us unique purpose is, in the end, not so far away.
As my NFL career came to a close due to a football injury, I began to see my existence through a different lens. I started noticing memory gaps at 30 years old – memories full of significance that now were black holes within my personal history. For the first time, I realized how pivotal my memories are in the foundation of who I am.
I began to ask, “What is relevant if you can’t remember it?” This question turned into the journey of finding the answer. One way in doing that was to write my story Counting the Days While My Mind Slips Away. The title for my book came from a song lyric in which I was celebrating life, memories, and football. It truly is a story of hope and miraculous healing.
The other outcome was discovering my MVP message: Mind, Value, and Purpose. My struggles with memory and the training process to strengthen it taught me how valuable every moment is in our lives. I asked this question, “How differently would you live your life today if you knew the day would come when you’d lose your memory?” My answer was “radically different”. Every one of us allows our memories to define who we are, so, in essence, we find our identities within the memories that originate from our experiences.
Being an MVP in life is about discovering the true value in every moment, and when you seize this value it begins to redefine your purpose! That, my friends, has life changing outcomes. Discover how significant your mind is to the makeup of who you are, and it will result in a life filled with new value and purpose.
– Ben
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