So the pool table was well overdue for ‘re-felting’. I’ve had this table in my possession for ten years and it has seen its fair share of the good times and the not so good, the wins and the losses. But like all of us from time to time it was due for a little TLC. After some online searching the job was booked with one of the few companies in Brisbane that possess the skilled resources required to re-felt a pool table. Without going into any detail, and in all its simplicity, I can certainly say that it turned out to be a ‘bad experience’ (for a variety of reasons) and I am still lacking the enthusiasm to even pick up a cue.
As a seeker of truth it lead me to question the credibility of that well worn old adage “it’s hard to get good help these days”; this being the only response I could muster to such questions as “why is that line so crooked?” or “what are those stretch marks all over the fabric?”.
At the end of the day whether this statement is true or not all comes down to YOU! How much do you care… really? I don’t just mean care about collecting your pay cheque at the end of the week; I mean REALLY care. Do you spend your week counting down the minutes to the weekend? If your answer is yes, then perhaps you too are perpetuating the illusion that getting good help is hard to find.
Yes it is nice to collect your pay cheque at the end of the week, after all you have worked really hard to earn it… or have you? Do you have an entitlement philosophy… does the world owe you a job? Or is your job a privilege? Put yourself in the shoes of (many) others and you may come to some interesting conclusions.
It really doesn’t take a great deal of effort to make a difference, to help, to “serve”, to just care a little bit more, to put a smile on someone else’s face. What better way to live life than to simply put a smile on someone else’s face, because if you really think about it, isn’t that what you are expecting others to do for you?
Being of service to others is rewarding and part of the fundamental core of what it means to be human. It is also one of the essential elements of society that has helped us get to where we are today (and hopefully where we are going). It’s probably one of the reasons you do what you do, right?
Yes I know, I do ask a lot of questions! I believe we should always be questioning ourselves in an effort to keep on improving, to keep on striving for better, but not just for ourselves. If you put others first, you too raise yourself up to that same level of care; deserving of care and the right to receive care in return for the care you show others.
It will find its way back to you, I promise!
In my experience this rings truest in the Advice professions. Where else could you find more opportunity to put a smile on someone else’s face than in the profession of Advice, whether you are an Accountant, a Lawyer, a Financial Planner, a Doctor, a Veterinarian or any other profession for that matter. You are there to impart a service… to serve. What is it you are really serving to your clients? Not “advice” really… it’s reassurance, clarity, freedom from stress, more time to worry less. And the belief that you care, that you have their best interests at heart, that they can count on you and trust you to do your best… for them. For they are just like you; they have the same hopes and dreams, the same desire to be cared for.
So what are those simple yet meaningful things you can do a little more of to show the world you care? If I need to answer this for you then nothing I say will matter. This is much more than just donating to charity once a year; caring can become your default mindset, when you choose to care enough times that it simply becomes who you are.