"This is how you change the world"

I have to admit, I had a mini pity party last week. It was temporary, but still...It was one of those days when I’d worked something like 12 hours and was exhausted and all I could think about was the fact that the next few days were going to be equally as long. As I walked from my office to the parking lot late one evening (don’t worry, it was well lit and perfectly safe),  I took a picture of my lonely car sitting in an almost empty parking lot. Being of the millennial generation, I instagram-ed it and added the hash tag,  #ThisIsWhyI’msingle (because I work so much). Another hardworking and dedicated friend simply commented: This is how you change the world.

This simple comment completely changed my attitude. Instantaneously I was humbled and revitalized.

While I’m not delusional enough to think I’m single handedly  "changing the world", I do hope to make it a little better. We all have our roles to play. But for me, her intent was clear. In those few words, her meaning was unmistakable.  We work so much, not because of money, not because it’s easy or because we are recognized for our efforts. We do it because change, any change, is hard and takes time. We do it because we believe what we’re doing will ultimately make a difference in someone's life, that it will be worth it, that maybe, just maybe, we’re solving one small piece of the puzzle.  No one ever changed the world working 9-5. To those of us with similar aspirations, it’s not a job, it’s a calling.

Anticipating a busy time of year for us, I recently made my staff write down their own version of the popular saying, Keep Calm and Carry On.  I told them that it was going to be a crazy couple weeks and that they needed to identify their own ways to stay calm in trying situations. The responses I got were funny and shed some light on their personalities. One wrote: Keep Calm and Take a Nap, another wrote: Keep Calm and Go Running, and another: Keep Calm and Smile. As for me, I wrote:  Keep Calm and Think of Puppies.  I love puppies, just thinking of them makes me happy (I know I sound like I’m 4, but I’m okay with that).

I think I just found another mantra to repeat on those overwhelming days;  This is how you change the world.

Quote for the day:

“ I used to be lonely and I’m not anymore. If I go out now, it won’t matter. The thing won’t stop. I’m just a little part of it. It will grow and grow.

  - from,  In Dubious Battle, by John Steinbeck.

Tina, over and out.