Creating a Unique and Original Life – One Man’s Example

101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life, Vol. 3
I am delighted to share my latest book contribution in excerpts! This was released last week and is available either online or through the link here.

Creating a Unique and Original Life
In order to lead an original and unique life, we do have to think outside the box and create our own rules and guidelines for accomplishment. The best among us always have done so. It is our privilege to observe and learn from the lessons these pioneers can teach us.

My great grandfather, the renowned American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, left just such a legacy. He never played by the rules but instead forged his own path and despite many naysayers created architecture well ahead of its time. His designs still serve as an inspiration today. Many said he couldn’t do what he ultimately did. They said it wouldn’t work, wouldn’t stand the test of time, and would collapse. While many of his projects have undergone extensive renovation, the innovative concepts presented in such properties as Fallingwater and the S.C. Johnson Wax buildings are timeless and blazed a trail of originality and creativity far ahead of his time.

Frank Lloyd Wright, while a legend today, was perpetually broke, often accepting bail-outs from clients, and indulging in his passion for collecting art and buying grand pianos for his well known musicale evenings, rather than paying his debtors. His fondest saying was, “Give me the luxuries of life and I will gladly do without the necessities.” Of course, he didn’t do without necessities, but what he found essential was far beyond what most people consider necessary. He lived a life apart and beyond his peers and even those closest to him. He lived a life of his own design.

What trail would you blaze if you made your own rules? What necessities would you give up to have the luxuries you most desire?