When we find ourselves in a state of discomfort, I find that we often tend to look for hills to climb to elevate us from our low point. From the low point in the valley, the top of the hill looks really good. It seems like a relief from discomfort and a place to feel safe.

Yet after only a short while at the top of the hill we learn that there is really no place to go but back down the hill. We become in essence, bored for a moment and almost uncomfortable with the calm. After descending into discomfort again we look for the next hill to climb.

As an alternative we could seek a mountain to climb, in fact an Everest of a mountain; one so high and so intimidating that we can continue to climb for a lifetime without ever reaching stagnation, camping for no more time than is necessary to recharge our batteries before embarking on the next leg of the journey.

Nelson Mandela once said, “There is no passion to be found playing small, in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.” It seems to me that it’s easy to climb hills thinking we are on the right track, when perhaps our true life’s passions can only be achieved by setting our sites much higher than what is merely comfortable? What if we make of our lives an adventure that leads us to greatness? What if we climb mountains instead of hills?

What greatness looks like can be many things and doesn’t necessarily mean fame and fortune, as our society tends to portray it. It can be a life of simplicity and art, it can be building things with earnestness and care, it can be caring for people in need, it can be raising children to become authentic beings, or it can be as an agent of change, a leader, a well source of inspiration.

What is your true passion?