Inspiration

I've met a lot of people who inspire me in life. A few I've written about before, like my Iraqi friend. I could write reams about my best girlfriends and how they are the smartest, funniest, most unique and curious and challenging group of women I know, and how it's an absolute privilege to know we get to walk through this life together. Let me tell you about someone new.

Khaled is a new friend. He's Palestinian-Canadian. He's 27. And he runs the first geothermal energy company in the entire Middle East. From Palestine. He's just one example of something I know is fact: 25-35 year olds secretly run the new world. Facebook and Groupon all the way to start-ups in emerging markets like Palestine, India and beyond. You can watch his TedX Ramallah video here - it's 20 minutes that will make you sit back and think, what the hell am I doing in this cubicle? Really, watch it. It's hilarious and perfect and will make you feel bad about yourself in a good, kick in the ass way.

If you're reading this and you're 25-35, what are you doing NOT taking advantage of this amazing burst of youth energy and innovation?? Get off the bench and get out there. As the Microsoft entrepreneur guy said (my new WWMEGD motto), "don't do something to please your parents. Don't do something because it's what anyone else expects. Do it because you can't not do."

I also found this quote, which is slightly over the top but still rang true for me (especially since my doctor recently told me I was 'not built to last' in my current lifestyle:

"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one: the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap, and being a force of nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grivances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy."

See you on the scrap heap.