Thin DifferenceI sometimes wonder if Thin Difference makes any sense at all. For some, it may sound negative, like people don’t make much of a difference. For others, it may sound more philosophical than practical.

When I purchased the URL several years ago, it was after reading a book entitled A Thin Difference. It was a wonderful novel, and it made me think about how the choices we make have a thin separation in where they take us.

As discussed in the Life Is a Warrior Dash post, Thin Difference is about life choices, and it may be more philosophical in approach.

Think about your life and the choices you made. What if you decided a different way?

When I think about my life, there are many choices that could have taken me in very different directions. A few key ones come to mind immediately:

  • After college, I had a job opportunity working in economic development for a region in South Dakota. I chose to join a congressional campaign instead, and it eventually took me to Washington, DC.
  • At a birthday party, I met two women and decided to call one. Although she gave me an excuse the first time, we now have been married for over 20 years.
  • In Washington, DC, I had a choice: become a lobbyist or leave to do something else. Now, I have been in Texas for 20 years, working in business.

The point: Pick any of your life-type decisions, and the one you made took you down a path – good or bad.

Then there is the other side; those choices you make in a split second. These can change your life forever – good or bad. There are many stories of drinking-and-driving, getting angry too fast, going along just because it’s easier, and the list grows…

We do dance on life’s edge, and this is a very good thing. It does not mean taking unnecessary risks, but it does mean being engaged in life.

When we are un-engaged, there are, essentially, two paths: little risk since we are sitting back, or big risk because we are doing something others said was “OK” and may take us in an unwise direction.

When we are engaged, there are, essentially, two paths: medium risk since we are tiptoeing in to see how things may go, or big risk because we are “all in” pursuing a big initiative, new idea, or dramatic change.

We need to be in the engaged category and pursuing the “all in” approaches.

It all comes down to the choices we make and how those choices reflect on who we really are as a human being.

This is the Thin Difference. We are faced with life choices every day.

We can take the inspired direction or the lazy one. It is our choice.

We can look at life in a positive (half full) way or in a pessimistic (half empty) way. It is our choice.

We can engage fully in our life and community, or we can take a “half in” approach. It is our choice.

We can talk about having high values and then do things that are questionable from an integrity standpoint. It is our choice.

We can talk about the importance of community and then hide in our homes or behind our computer screens. It is our choice.

We can talk about the importance of living a fully-engaged life and then practice it. It is our choice.

Our choices define us.

What we say doesn’t define us completely; it only sets an expectation. We are either consistent or hypocritical, depending if our choices match our talk.

Our choices define who we are. Our choices make us real.

This is Thin Difference.

We need to make choices that matter. We need to make choices for a fully engaged and inspired life. We need to make choices that take us on the paths of making a positive difference way more often than the other way.

Maybe I got the naming of this blog wrong, but I do strongly believe in the philosophy behind it.

Your thoughts are always welcomed and encouraged. In fact, it would really help me figure a few things out.