I See People...

At the end of your day, what have you really accomplished? If there is anyone out there anything at all like me, I too often measure the meaning of my day by how many items I have successfully marked off my never ending "to do" list. I know that I am wired this way. I love to get stuff done. It is my strength and my weakness all at the same time. We all know the under-achiever and the guy in the office who is always on the short end of productivity. This guy is a stumbling block for my day destined to be filled with accomplishment. Get out of my way so I can get something done. I am the guy who sits back and smiles when the in box is emptied. When all of those little yellow sticky notes are finally deposited into file 13... then and only then can I feel like I've actually done something.

The only downfall I seem to revisit here is that when all of this "work" is to the demise of my real call in life. People. Am I the only one who walks past someone else who may be in need of my services of listening just to return a meaningless phone call? What if the shoe is on the other foot? How do I feel when I need some attention of someone and they put me off to get stuff done? I find them to be inconsiderate and self-centered. They obviously have their own agenda. But what happens when I am that guy?

Think about it this way... What would others say about me if they received a "reference call" about me? Wow, that guy really knows how to shuffle paper. Man is he ever punctual to return my emails! That guy Micah, he really knows how to use his office hours to get the most out of them. As superior as these qualities may appear, that is not what I want to be known for. I want the accolade of being a people person. Let me be remembered as the guy who cared more about people that papers. When it is all said and done, let me be known as the man who listened.

Just a friendly reminder to those out there who are overtly task oriented... stop and smell the roses. The most rich accomplishment in any 24 hour period will be the people that we meet, the ones we get to know, and the ones in whom we invest a bit of us into.