When I was younger I wanted to change the world.

In my classes at the Ateneo Grad School, we propose that that work of changing the world, making a difference (aka leadership) follows the pattern of the ripple effect. The drop in the ocean starts with answering one’s call and following one’s inner voice of passion. The first ripple are those the leader immediately affects. The second are those whom the converts in the first ripple (aka disciples, early adapters or champions) pass the message or the inspiration on to. Quite simply the idea goes viral because people pass it on and pay it forward. With enough momentum, the ripples grow reaching more people and spreads over time (sometimes even past the lifetime of the leader) because the message gets passed down and people organize communities or companies around the sense of purpose they have experienced.

A friend reminded me of something I needed to relearn about this in the form of a story:

There was a little girl walking by the beach, picking up every starfish he would see and throwing them back in the water. Another man goes up to her and says, “What are you doing? There are too many starfish on the beach. You can’t possibly save them all and make much of a difference.” The little girl picks up a starfish and says, “But it makes a difference to this starfish.”

When I was younger I wanted to change the world. Today I just want to make a difference one person at a time.