“In every adversity, there lies the seed of equivalent advantage. In every defeat is a lesson showing you how to win the victory next time.”
–Robert Collier
There was a family that had twin boys. Worried that the boys had developed extreme personalities – one was a total pessimist, the other a total optimist – their parents took them to a psychiatrist.
First the psychiatrist treated the pessimist. Trying to brighten his outlook, the psychiatrist took him to a room piled to the ceiling with brand-new toys. But instead of yelping with delight, the little boy burst into tears. “What’s the matter?” the psychiatrist asked, baffled. “Don’t you want to play with any of the toys?”
“Yes,” the little boy bawled, “but if I did I’d only break them.”
Next the psychiatrist treated the optimist. Trying to dampen his out look, the psychiatrist took him to a room piled to the ceiling with horse manure. But instead of wrinkling his nose in disgust, the optimist emitted just the yelp of delight the psychiatrist had been hoping to hear from his brother, the pessimist. Then he clambered to the top of the pile, dropped to his knees, and began gleefully digging out scoop after scoop with his bare hands.
“What do you think you’re doing?’ the psychiatrist asked, just as baffled by the optimist as he had been by the pessimist.
“With all this manure,” the little boy replied, beaming, “there must be a pony in here somewhere!”
Have you found the pony in the midst of these trying circumstances? I don’t want to minimize the negative impact of COVIC19–believe me, I’m feeling it, too. I have a friend whose daughter just had a baby at 32 weeks in a hospital in Italy. Mom tested positive for corona virus even though she had no symptoms. They sent her home and the baby, who tested negative, remains in the NICU ALONE! Mom and Dad can’t be there with her. They will transport Mom’s milk via the Red Cross daily, but imagine that. AND there are people who have succumbed to the virus. Jobs have been lost and businesses failed.
My challenges seem small in comparison and you know that because I’ve written about where I’ve been struggling. Last week’s blog was about the habit of happiness. The state of happiness is an inside job and isn’t connected to our money, possessions, circumstances and/or other people. Those things can disappear in a moment. Happiness is a choice. Two weeks before that was about coping with COVID19. If you missed them, you can find them here: http://www.empowermentmentor.com/janmcdonald/blog/
There’s a gap between the knowing and the doing and I needed to begin the doing…period.
How can I write this stuff for you if I’m not walking my talk. A huge part of leadership is leading by example…and I certainly have not been a stellar example. I started looking for the ponies…daily. Here are some: Dennis is considered essential and is still working. I’ve been connecting by Zoom with those I love. Did you know there are games that you can play with others online? I didn’t. I am extremely healthy. Working out with WalMart resistance bands and hiking helps my stress and physical health the same as going to the gym. Spring is more beautiful this year because I have more time to appreciate it. My faith in God has grown.
I found out some things about myself, too. I need people more than I thought. That’s a huge “aha!” for a task-oriented person. I also learned that the feeling of powerlessness can wreak havoc on my attitude. As a recovering control freak, I knew that, but it’s been an intense reminder. If I can’t control it, which is most of life right now, I need to not stress about it.
There! Thank you for listening. What have you learned about yourselves? AND what ponies have you found? Think about it–they are in that pile.
Still digging,
Jan
Jan McDonald
The John Maxwell Team
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