How to Change the World

Kind of an ambitious for a how-to article, isn't it? The idea of changing the world is challenging, but it's not impossible. A lot of it has to do with how you view problems and how you view your own ability. In this article, I'll give you my perspective of how individuals can make a major difference.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• The desire to make a positive impact with your life.

1. Take the Time to Find Causes You Care About
   
   Do your research on these issues so you can know the scope of the problems and organizations you can join to help find solutions. These will often open up opportunities for you to give your time and finances and combine it with others to make a bigger impact.
2. Become a Positive Influence and Blessing Where You Live
   
   Sometimes it's small actions--a smile, listening to someone, using your time to help someone in need--that are what make major differences in people's lives.
   
   As you progress in life, a lot of times more and more opportunities will open up for you on a financial level. (In other words, the goal of becoming financially rich and more influential is not greedy if you have the right perspective on it.) Just don't mistake it with the idea that if you don't have money you can't make a difference.
3. Create "Pay-it-Forward" Situations
   
   Do something so major for someone else and only request in return that they help someone else when they have an opportunity. (If you haven't seen the movie based on this concept, it's really good.)
4. Train Yourself to Look for Opportunity
   
   A lot of times we may find ourselves asking "why doesn't someone do something about (insert problem here)?" Maybe everyone else around us is thinking the same thing. Sometimes it takes one person to get things rolling, and other people will jump in to help if someone takes the lead. It obviously isn't something we can do in every situation, but we can keep our eyes open. Best wishes to you!

Tips & Warnings

• Mother Teresa has some awesome quotes on this issue--I've linked a page of them in the resources below.
• Don't get so overwhelmed by major problems that you believe there's no point to taking action--inaction never solved anything.