When someone asks how work is going? It’s easy to dive right into the things going well and the stuff that’s brutal or even just flat. That’s not very interesting. What’s interesting is when you take the time to look down the line.
Looking down the line means that I don’t respond based on how everything is going for ME but rather how my life is working out for my wife, kids, friends, family and team (HT Bob Goff).
If I can’t answer right then and there how my life is working out for those other individuals then it’s a flag to stop and find out. Find out before rushing into a self-focused response.
We are all a cumulative collection of how everyone else is doing. Anyone can talk about themselves and make life work out for number one, but to judge our life based on the condition of those around us takes guts and effort.
This is easy some days but wow it’s hard a lot of the time. I get so caught up in the daily “making of doughnuts” (HT Jeremie Kubicek) that I lose sight of the people around me. I start day trading my capacity to serve the people in my life for a chance to carry more of the workload.
Let’s try this again. Today’s a new day.
