That’s our take in the first episode of our new newsletter with Bill called Fully Alive by Design.
Every Tuesday we’ll send you one reframe (think), one story (learn), and one simple tool (do) to help you design more meaning into your life.
Think of this as your weekly pause — a moment to step back, put on your “wonder glasses,” and see life differently.
Here’s a taste from this week’s issue:
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Learn
Allan had been in the working world about ten years when restlessness set in. His sociology degree hadn’t pointed to a clear career, but his knack for spreadsheets landed him in project management at a financial software firm.
At first, it felt great — he was part of big, exciting projects. But over time the work narrowed. His creativity wasn’t tapped. His voice wasn’t heard.
What once felt like momentum began to feel like limitation.
“Is this all there is?” he wondered.
Deep down, Allan feared he was simply settling.
Haven’t we all been there? Life is fine — maybe even good — but somehow not fully ours.
Think
For decades, the gold standard of living a “complete” life has been what Abraham Maslow called self-actualization.
In 1943, he introduced his famous hierarchy of needs, with survival at the bottom and self-actualization — “becoming everything one is capable of becoming” — at the very top.
It’s an inspiring idea, and it still resonates today.
But here’s the catch: striving for fulfillment this way rests on some questionable assumptions.
It assumes there’s a single, discoverable “true you.”
That this one self can be fully optimized and expressed.
And that your worth depends on how others value your contributions.
The truth?
You’re far too vast to be summed up in one lifetime.
Striving to “become all that you are” sets you up for pressure and disappointment.
As Walt Whitman said: “(You) are large, (You) contain multitudes.”
Maslow himself realized this. Late in life, he added a higher level: self-transcendence.
Not just looking inward to fulfill the self.
Not just about the ego.
But looking outward — connecting, caring, joining something larger than yourself.
Self-transcendence isn’t just the top of the pyramid.
It cuts through all the layers and is available at any stage of life’s “becoming.”
That shift changes everything.
When we stop chasing the impossible dream of being “fulfilled,” we can show up more vibrantly, more curiously, more compassionately.
That’s what it means to be fully alive.
Do
Take a few minutes with these questions — journal, talk them over with a friend, or just sit with them.
No right answers. Only discoveries.
Would you rather be fulfilled once — or fully alive every day? Why?
How does self-transcendence expand your sense of what a meaningful life could be?
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See you soon,
Bill & Dave