A Holiday Thought (for the whole year)

I quite often get admonished for talking to people when I’m out.  People who care about me worry, this, because, when I go out for a walk I say hello or something kind to most people.  I don’t actually do this to upset the people who care about me, I do so because I understand something.  And, I know there is something I should do.

Not everyone gets the same advantages and disadvantages in life. Trust me, everyone does get tested, it’s just hard to see how all tests work. When I go out and walk the streets, I never know how the other person I cross paths with feels. I never know who has had a good day or a bad day. It is not possible to know the wealthy person who is despondent or feeling abandoned. Nor is it easy to know the penniless person on skid row who is happy, because they are there with all their friends.

When I go out and walk down the street, and I say a kind word, for some people that would be just, “So what?” And yet and yet, for some other people, it may be the best or kindest thing they hear all day or all week.

If you knew you would make a difference, a dramatic positive difference, in someone’s day just by being kind and saying hi, would you do it? If you knew you would make that difference, you just did not know who you would meet who needed it, what would you do?

Thank you to Unsplash and Bryan Minear for the use of  this photo.

Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society. View all posts by Mike Balof