7 Surefire Rules to be a Better YOU - Part 6 of 7

Rule 6 - Notice the Power of ONE
"I am personally convinced that one person can be a change catalyst, a "transformer" in any situation, any organization"
Stephen Covey

Whether we realize it or not, the power of ONE is extremely evident, and it exists all around us. Sometimes, it takes only ONE moment, or person, or sentence, or event, or thought for something to happen - good or bad. More often than not, the creation of that ONE may have taken years of effort, money, time and contribution from many parties - but in the end, it is the ONE that people remember, that had carved its name comfortably in the history books, that had made a lasting impact.
The ONE bomb blastOn the 6th of August 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, a city in Japan. We all know the story and the impact of the attack - 60 000 buildings were destroyed, 70 000 people died instantly, and 70 000 more people died 5 years after the attack, due to radiation. All that from ONE bomb blast. The atomic bomb was a result of $2 billion worth of research and months of planning, and the impact of it lasts till today.

The ONE rock that dropped the giantIn the Bible (I refer to this story though I am not a Christian, as I truly believe that there are essential lessons which can be learnt from all faiths), the story of David and Goliath is a popular one. Goliath was a 9' tall giant with full armour, that everyone was terrified of. David, who was in his teens, and was barely armed with the exception of his sling shot and a bag of rocks, decided to face the giant. Despite the giant's insults and jeerings, and many people's doubt of this little boy's capabilities to fight the giant, David did not budge from his decision. Beyond everybody's belief, David used his slingshot and shot a rock at Goliath, hitting him on his eye, leading to his fall and eventual death. It was the ONE rock, from the ONE boy that dropped him.

The ONE hour that Earth blacked outIn 2007, for ONE hour, 2.2 million residents of Sydney participated in the Earth Hour a combined effort by WWF and the Sydney Morning Herald to create awareness towards the need to take action on the issue of climate change. That ONE hour led to 126 countries participating in the Earth Hour in 2010, where in the United States alone, 90 million people turned off their lights. In the Philippines, 15 million people turned off their lights. The ONE hour that Earth went dark, would have probably saved her years in life. That ONE hour brought all the people on Earth together; though miles apart and continents away, everyone participated for one common good - to save the Earth.

The ONE sentence that changed her lifeMichelle Aguilar was 242 pounds when she joined the Biggest Loser competition. To make matters worse, she joined in with her mother, who when Michelle was 18, called her on the phone to say that she was leaving her dad. Michelle, the eldest in the family felt devastated, especially since her mother decided to take her 2 siblings with her and started a new family, leaving Michelle with her father. Though she did love her dad, Michelle was constantly haunted by the question "Why did she leave me behind?". Throughout the Biggest Loser competition, Michelle was half-hearted because of her emotional baggage that she was carrying around. Trainer Jillian Michaels had trouble trying to get this girl to want to be there, till one day, Jillian confronted Michelle and asked her what was worrying her. Michelle poured her heart out, and the real problem that was bugging her came out - she was actually guilty to be joining the competition with her mom; she felt that she was betraying her father. Jillian made her call her father on the phone and Michelle told her father what was bothering her. To which her father replied that there was nothing she could possibly do to make him less proud of who she is. And he said "You are my inspiration" After lots of tear-shedding, Michelle walked out a different person. To cut a long story short, Michelle went on to lose a total of 110 pounds, and emerged the winner of the Biggest Loser 2008! What changed her? It could have been that ONE person, Jillian Michaels; it could have been that ONE moment, when she spoke to her dad; but I think, it is because of that ONE sentence - what her dad told her.

Sometimes in life, it is that ONE that truly matters - notice that, understand it, and use it to become the best you that you can ever be.

How you can use 'The Power of One' to be Better

1. Be that ONE person to someone. "To the world, you may be just one person; but to one person, you may be the world". How true that is. Sometimes, we aim to achieve so much in life, we end up disappointing those who think they have achieved something already, just by having us in their lives. Sometimes it helps, just to open up our eyes and look harder - the love we are looking for might be right in front of us; the wealth we are so busy digging for might be standing by our side all this time. I'm sure we remember those 'ONE person's in our lives - it could be that ONE teacher that believed in us, or that ONE friend that listened, or that ONE dog which showed us unconditional love. Choose to be 'that ONE person' to someone - it's definitely worth it.

2. Say that ONE sentence to someone in need. In the song Flying Without Wings, Westlife sang "Everybody's looking for that something, One thing that makes it all complete, You'll find it in the strangest places, Places you never knew it could be...You'll find it in the words of others, A simple line can make you laugh or cry" It sort of hits the nail on the head now, doesn't it? I mean, honestly, how many times have we been moved (either in a paralyzing or a crystallizing way) by something someone says? It may have come from someone that mattered in our lives, it may have come from someone who didn't matter in our lives, it may have come from someone we loved or hated, it may have come from someone in our childhood or days as an adult - we all have experienced someone somewhere, saying something at sometime that changed us, at least for that moment. Sometimes, we hear it in songs or in movies, both which had and still have a big impact on my life. One such movie is Mona Lisa Smile, which strengthened my belief in defying convention in education. Set in the 1950s, the movie is about a teacher who fights for her all-girl classroom to understand that there are options, that life is not just another black and white tale. She was resisted by one of her student, Betty, who adamantly believed that being housewives was the role that women were born to fill. In the end, Betty learnt the bitter lesson of life because she chose to allow convention to shadow her wisdom, but her teacher Katherine Watson decided to leave, and Katherine was labeled an 'aimless wanderer' by all at school, to which Betty responded "But not all who wander are aimless, especially those who seek truth beyond tradition, beyond definition, beyond the image". Truth is, we always have a choice of what to say to someone. Listen to your gut, open your eyes and ears and heart - if someone is in need of help, sometimes the best we can do is to listen, and offer that ONE sentence that can help.

3. Do that ONE deed that everyone says is too hard or impossible to do. I have been and am still always trying to live by what Gandhi said "Be the change you would like to see in the world today" - it's like he compressed a whole lot of wisdom and weight into that one sentence! "Be the change". That means, if you see garbage on the floor, you pick it up. If you hear water running without use, you turn it off. If you feel unhappy at work, you do something about it! Why you? Because you know you can! You cannot expect someone else to do it when you tell them to, but you can do it, can't you? That's something you can control. Whether or not we are going to achieve world peace, get rid of poverty, stop fighting over riches (or over colour and creed and race and religion...or over anything at all, for that matter), combat global warming, save the animals or use up all of earth's natural resources - we have a choice. We, yes, you and I, can make a difference. Start making a difference before expecting others to - lead by example, and bask in the glory of knowing that you did something right.

The Power of YOU

So, remember, you're never too incapable to make a difference - if you're moneyless but rich in time, give ONE hour to someone who needs it; if you're a person of words, give ONE sentence of support; if you're blessed with a pair of hands, do ONE good deed, pick up that piece of glass lying on the road to prevent it from hurting others; if you're scared, toughen up and take ONE step towards achieving your goals; if you're a teacher, change the life of ONE student if you can.

Remember, you can if you want to.

ONE woman refused to get off her seat in the bus so racism can be abolished (Rosa Parks)
ONE man went on hunger strikes for weeks for peace (Gandhi)
ONE child asked the right question (The Emperor's New Clothes)

ONE is not a number. It is a statement - so shout it out loud.
I'll leave you with this powerful poem, on the Power of ONE. Good luck in your journey to incorporate this powerful principle in your daily life.

To realize the value of ONE year
Ask a student who has failed the final exam

To realize the value of ONE month
Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby

To realize the value of ONE week
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper

To realize the value of ONE day
Ask the labourer who earns a daily income to support his wife and kids

To realize the value of ONE hour
Ask the lovers who are waiting to meet

To realize the value of ONE minute
Ask the person who has missed his flight

To realize the value of ONE second
Ask a person who has survived an accident

To realize the value of ONE milisecond
Ask the person who won the Silver medal in the Olympics.

Coming up...Part 7 of the "7 Surefire Rules to be a Better YOU"