Small Things, Huge Results

“They’d be embarrassed so I’ll just call it a trade.”

Sue Butterfield

 
Small Things, Huge Results

Sue had given me a large stack of checks to take to our credit union to deposit and the day was slipping away quickly.  I was just leaving my office and was on the way to another meeting when I drove past a branch that would allow me to leave the stack of paper.  I walked in the building and handed a teller the deposit.  I watched as she began the long process of scanning the many checks until she finished.  It all seemed so pedestrian.  But it wasn’t.

The teller handed me one check back and said, “This one won’t clear so I won’t deposit it.  I don’t want you to be charged a returned check fee.”  She made a change to the deposit amount and I accepted the returned check.  I left and continued on my way.

When I got home later that night I handed the check to Sue and said, “Out of all of those checks the one that was returned was from one of our friends!” 

She took the check in hand and said with a smile, “No need to call them.  They’ll be so embarrassed and I don’t want that to happen.  Since they were so kind to us a couple of weeks ago, we’ll just call it a trade!”

I stood watching as Sue spoke those words and knew immediately that it was the right thing to do.  It was such a small check.  But it could have had a large cost to our friendship if not handled with consideration and kindness.   Kindness and consideration have much more value than money could ever have.  When combined with friendship they are priceless.

There are so many times its easy forget what has real value as we walk through life.  Its also easy to take a minute to stop to think about what’s of real value in dealing with everyday life situations.  Showing consideration is such a small thing with an ability to have a huge impact.  If you want to do what appears to be a little thing and also something huge all at once show kindness and consideration.  You’ll never forget the result and neither will those to whom you show your goodness.  Don’t let your chance slip away!

Magical Perseverance

“Courage and perseverance have a magical talisman, before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish into thin air.” – John Quincy Adams

Magical Perseverance

I have known my friend Ron Hein for right at thirty years now.  So, when he called me a few weeks ago asking me to help market a family property I was so glad.  I knew we would be able to spend some good personal time together.  You see, we have been in the throes of raising families and haven’t spent much time together as a result.  Now our lives are changing and we are entering a new season.

Ron’s father recently passed away and he, along with his siblings, were left with his home of many years to clean up and distribute.  He invited me to walk through the house, along with his brother and sister, so I could have an idea of what help they needed to find a new owner.  It was during this meeting that I first got an idea as to the kind of resilience that life was developing within Ron.

Since I work in sales I have often repeated the words of Samuel Johnson during difficult transactions.  He said, “Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance.”  I have learned over time that few attributes correlate more directly with success than does perseverance.  It is also one of the toughest characteristics to instill in oneself.  In fact, shrugging off failure and redoubling efforts takes perseverance.  Picking oneself up off the ground to where one has been knocked and taking another shot at the goal takes perseverance.   Resisting pain, sometimes humiliation, too, and remaining stubbornly focused on the task takes enormous reserves of perseverance.

So how do you increase your ability to persevere?  The answers were revealed to me as I listened to Ron recount his current situation.  Two of the most traumatic events life offers us are death of a loved one and completing a real estate transaction.  My friend was in the middle of dealing with both at the same time!  This experience has taught him to follow his head rather than his heart or body.

Ron works full time every day and has spent nights, for months, cleaning his father’s old home, making repairs and reclaiming the yard.  Through this period I can guarantee you that his heart has urged him to spend his evenings relaxing with family or friends.  There have been evenings when his body has urged him to climb into bed and go to sleep.  And, each and every time he overcame one of these urgings and adhered to his plan he increased his ability to persevere!  He was strengthening his perseverance muscle.

I don’t know many people who get up each morning saying, “Oh boy, I hope I can strengthen my perseverance muscle today!”  Perhaps that’s why life comes with “seasons of living;” each season brings with it new joys, new challenges and new growth if we will simply see the opportunities and grasp them. 

To get the most growth possible grasping means more than just living though events.  One must internalize the challenge, embrace it and own the resulting growth.  Only then can one be fully ready to move on to new opportunities.  Perseverance naturally leads to resilience.

It is having the attribute of resilience that will allow you to have deep joy and hope for the future.  It allows you to spring into your future with confidence and anticipation.  Have you looked into the eyes of a two-year-old as she learns one skill and then follows her shinning eyes with haste and vigor to her next lesson?  That’s what I wish for you! Look at the world through two-year-old eyes and enjoy your life with delight!

Cloaked Opportunity

“When I don’t feel as if I’m making enough progress due to seemingly insurmountable obstacles, I never worry because I know it’s a sign of copious opportunity.”

- George Smith

Cloaked Opportunity

I sat in a large room filled with people, but it felt as if I was alone, captivated with what George was teaching me.  George has a lot to teach because of his experience, knowledge and wisdom.  You see, he was a child during the Great Depression, one of the worst economic periods in world history.  He also saw the damage done to veterans who returned from World War I, the war to end all wars.  And, while he didn’t fight in World War II, he ran a large corporation and had trouble staffing important positions as a result of the war.

What is most fascinating to me is that during his leadership, in those challenging times, his company’s revenue more than doubled!  When I asked him how that could be, he looked at me through his horn rimmed glasses and said, “I simply had no doubt about our success and surrounded myself with others who believed in the same vision.”

He continued, “When I don’t feel as if I’m making enough progress due to seemingly insurmountable obstacles, I never worry because I know it’s a sign of copious opportunity!  Obstacles crush some people.  But, I’ve found they create opportunities that didn’t exist before.  They change the landscape! ”

“He knows what he’s talking about.”  I said to myself.  I thought of how the world has changed over his life time.  He has kept his philosophy through it all and still looks forward to the future with eagerness.

“I’m at my best when most people are wringing their hands.  I see two things in tough times.  First, there is less competition because many others are paralyzed by fear.  Second, I’ve learned to look at historical recurrences so I can accurately predict what is coming in the future.  These two patterns have been repeated over and over again.  I have learned to count on them and I’ve never been sorry.”

George has been able to count on constants in what others view as inconsistent times.  That’s why he is always positive in personality and positive about the good things that will certainly be coming into his life.  While the future remains cloaked for virtually everyone in the world, it is merely an exciting smorgasbord of opportunity for him.  He loves to share his secrets with everyone who will listen.  He wants them to enjoy the same advantages he’s enjoyed throughout his long, successful life.

“Almost everything is mental.” George says.  “The most important landscape to change is that of your mind.  Be excited when you see others running for cover.  Be a student of history and learn its lessons so you don’t make the mistakes of others.  Then apply what you learn so you can use it as your guide when others are seemingly lost and discouraged.  Finally, never stop living.  I view death as a choice in most cases.  I continue to choose to live and I hope you will too!"

Intangible Connections

“I’m so glad you came.  We do this every year.  I hope you will come again next summer!”

Camille Higgins

Intangible Connectivity

High in the mountains in the middle of the night there was a gunshot and then the loud clamor of pots and pans banging.  These noises at about two a.m. were not expected in such a normally serene atmosphere.  But, when there is a black bear prowling around a camp ground such noises at night are merely defensive blare until the morning glow bursts in as a protector.

In the light of the sun it was easy to see large paw prints on the damp ground and even on the sides of trucks, trailers, and motor homes.  These signs of the night’s prowler also served to stimulate excited conversation between traveling neighbors.  Who would have guessed that a group of people who live together in the same town and have known each other for many years would need to have a bear stimulate a conversation that would lead to deepened friendship and understanding? 

In fact, when riding in my friend Mike’s truck that very morning he said, “You know, I’ve known you for many years and have never really talked with you!”

Had my friend Danny and Mike & his wife Camille not planned and made all of the arrangements for this outing, the opportunity for me to spend time getting to know my neighbors better would have never happened.  We would have simply continued living our separate lives, together in the same town.  I would not have discovered the concept of Intangible Connectivity.

This trip caused me to understand that true relationships do not exist without a framework of Intangible Connectivity.  That is to say, living next to, or near someone else and knowing who they are does not automatically translate into friendship or really “knowing” them. 

To really get to know someone and become their friend you need to spend time with them.  You need to see the people they live their lives with.  You need to see how they react to challenging situations that surprise them.  You need to open your ears and listen to their dreams, hopes and plans for the future; intangibles.  Intangibles are things that allow you to have more than a superficial relationship; things that build a deeper connection. 

Connections to other people are the generator of life.  They are the creator of joy, long term happiness and wealth in all areas of your life.  Build greater connections today by spending time with your neighbors and friends.  Invite them into your life and enjoy the results. 

I’ve seen my camping friends since our trip.  We greeted each other warmly, like never before.  After all, we faced death from the jaws of a bear, road ATVs, fished, cooked over a fire, and talked for several days.  Now I call all of that an Intangible Connection.