It is so easy to get into our routine and just go, not thinking just moving. We forget how much influence we actually have to help others in a way that in reality is really small, but the gesture alone speaks volumes. Regardless of your position in your company, if you work or don’t work, we all have the ability to “make someone’s day,” to make REMARKABLE events happen. Take a moment, slow down and think about it. Which in and of itself is a huge task, because we NEVER slow down to think.
As stated in our book Breaking Conformity, “Ideas come from the most unlikely places” (a broken clock is right twice a day) Teach others, “if you do just a bit more, people will think you are amazing.”
So you want to make a difference? Are you looking for that “perfect opportunity?” Well guess what? It will never happen. The opportunities that will come for serving are the ones you will choose to engage in. YOU will make them happen. In Jim Stovall’s book The Millionaire Map he quoted General George Patton as saying “A good plan violently executed today is better than a perfect plan next week.”
Too often we look for the perfect plan. It may never exist, and while you are waiting for it, you will miss a ton of opportunities to serve.
Remarkable acts made simple.
- Hold the doors open for people when you’re going into big buildings. Young men, are you looking to get some attention? This will get you that. It’s a lost art. I train my boys to always do that, especially for woman, of course sometimes you get stuck in that position when the crowds are heavy, but you understand my point.
- When you’re getting up for a meal, take someone’s empty dishes that are around you, or clear their trash, if your getting a refill, offer to fill others. You’re already on your way there, use it as an opportunity to make their life easier.
- We have the ability to make a difference for everyone. S. Truett Cathy the founder of Chick-fil-A used to say “if you want to know if someone needs encouragement, just look to see if they are breathing”. Each day encourage 5 people. Its free, its easy, its something others do not do.
Help someone move. Take it up a notch.
I have a friend of mine that will NEVER ask anyone to help him move. I asked him why one day and he said, “Well because I don’t want to help anyone else move their house.” WOW!! that is going above and beyond just to avoid helping someone. Face it, no one wants to ask, because generally no one wants to help. Moving stinks, so if you are looking for a way to serve, this is always a great one.
You don’t have to make a big deal of it, just help!
Here is a story I love.
The starfish story.
One day, a man was walking along the beach, enjoying the morning sun and cool breeze from the ocean. Suddenly, far off in the distance, he saw what looked like someone dancing. But as he drew closer, the man noticed that it was a little girl picking up starfish from the shore and tossing them back into the ocean. As he approached the girl, he paused for a moment, kind of puzzled, then asked, “Young lady – why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”
She replied, “Well, the sun is up, and the tide is going out. If I leave these starfish on the beach, the sun will dry them up and they will die.”
The man said “But there are thousands of starfish washed up all along this beach for miles! You can’t possibly make a difference!”
The young girl thought for a moment, then slowly leaned over, and carefully picked up another starfish from the sand. And with the starfish in hand, she turned to the man and gently said “You may be right, but it’ll make a difference to this one!” And with that, she reached back and threw the starfish as far as she could back into the ocean.
Taking a nominal moment and turning it into a remarkable event is what we have the ability to do. It may not happen all the time, but it will happen, and it will happen when you are not expecting it. However, it will take effort on your part, it wont happen if you don’t try.
Whether its working for Chick-fil-A or any business, or just in life, we have opportunities daily to make a remarkable impact. When that voice inside you says it wont matter, just remember that it could matter, and today could be the day!