I wrote this for myself this morning.... as a mom... not as a professional. But the principles apply to business and all of life. Being a blessing means bringing value, leaving something better than you found it, being responsible.... all the things that add up to SUCCESS. So even though this was my thought today as a mother, I believe it is worth sharing as a professional.
"It's easy to just get caught up in the all work: feeding the kids, activities, keeping the house clean, work.... and it's ALL for the kids.
It's easy for me to forget that my goal with the kids is not to keep them well dressed, well fed, healthy, happy and active. My goal is to teach them to become contributing members of society; people who make the world, their schools, their homes.... better places. I want to teach them to contribute to the lives of others. In short, I want to teach them exactly what I still strive to be: A BLESSING to my home, my children, my friends, my industry, my world....
I give chores and responsibilities. But when I get too tired of waiting, tired of the whining, tired of forcing and fighting..... sometimes (and more often now than I like to admit) I lose the battle of wills by forfeit. The intentionality of creating and enforcing the discipline, rewards, pain and pleasure somehow gets lost in just being busy.
I've been telling the kids I want them to be responsible. But what I really want them to be is A BLESSING. When you really think about it, they are the same. It reminds of a saying a remember seeing in an aunts house when I was younger, "Bless this Mess"; if you really want to bless that mess, then clean it up! wink emoticon Being a blessing means taking responsibility.
Anyway, I was just thinking that instead of teaching my kids to be "responsible" that I will begin to teach them to be a blessing.
*It's more fun to pause outside the front door before walking in and ask ourselves how we can bless our home than it is to ask how we can be responsible. The end is the same: the list of chores.
*It's more fulfilling to ask ourselves how we can surprise and bless each other than to yell at them to stop yelling.
*It's more fulfilling to pause outside the school door and ask yourself how you can be a blessing to the building and the people inside.
*It's more rewarding to ask how we can bless ourselves... by learning and growing and preparing ourselves for a future and taking care of our bodies, and ultimately.... doing our homework. smile emoticon
I've been teaching the kids that being responsible is a chore, an unfulfilling requirement of life that may or may not bring consequences, negative or positive. I've been teaching them that they can get by without being responsible... which is sadly true. You can "get by", but I want more than that for them.
Today I'm going to ask them how they can be a blessing. My commitment moving forward is to be consistent, intentional and creative in instilling that desire in their own hearts."
How can you be a blessing today?
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