Advice may be cheap, but words that self-motivate are priceless.
By Jim Callahan
I’ve been fortunate enough and have benefited greatly by being surrounded by some great and learned minds, from cashiers to CEOs. Along the way, I’ve learned life lessons that have been ingrained in me.
Allow me to share some pearls of wisdoms that I’ve cultivated over a long career. Some might be overly exuberant, but then again, what does it hurt?
I’m particularly fond of this one, which is an original and gets me through every day: ‘It’s not how much better things will get if you keep trying. Rather, it’s how much worse they will get if you quit trying.’
There is another one of mine, derived from a significant loss in my life: “Life is about keeping a balance. Most of us cause ourselves great consternation by ignoring one-third of life’s balance equation.”
The loss revolves around my dear daughter Linda, who was 28 when she died. I wanted her to live to 108. In my sorrow, I forgot the critical third part of the equation—Linda was 28 when she passed, but thank God she didn’t pass away at the age of eight.
I realized the blessing that I was given because if she had succumbed at such a young age, my family and I couldn’t have handled it nearly as well—my entire world probably would have crumbled. But there were another 20 years that we did share and for that we are grateful. So we should search for and count our blessings, striving to find a measure of thankfulness and peace in them.
While we’re on that dreaded subject, during a time of extreme crisis, I was fortunate enough to find a young Spanish surgeon, on his knees weeping and holding a beautiful lady’s hand consoling her, and I will never forget the words he spoke: “Do not back away from death; it is a privilege and honor to be close to ones who have suffered that loss, as you get to witness them in a pure and unvarnished state, and you see the real person.”
ABOUT YOUR ATTITUDE
Sometimes life is short and sometimes it can be very long.
Remember that when you address a senior as “young man” or say “how are you today, young lady.” It’s nice but a little embarrassing. We know we’re old. Don’t point it out.
However, I don’t want to downplay the act of being good natured, which leads to this sentiment: “You get to choose your attitude every day.”
When you find yourself in really difficult situations or extreme trouble, do not back away or hide—face up to it and indeed, start slowly by walking toward the challenge facing you at the time.
You might be surprised how often those problems solve themselves or that while facing things, solutions suddenly appear. To me, this is one of the real keys to success in business and more importantly, life.
Hopefully, you never have to face anything alone, whether it’s times of trouble or times of joy.
Find a mentor who has earned your trust and with whom you can share things and he or she will likely surprise you with their calmness and wisdom.
All too often, we think that old people were born old and forget that they were once your age and it’s likely they’ve walked more than a mile in your shoes. They usually help you and in turn, it gives them an added sense of worth.
My hope is that you will find one of these simple thoughts worthy of remembering and that you will carefully store it away, as a craftsman would a tool. Then brush it off and apply it when the job seems too big.
Jim Callahan has more than 40 years of experience as a convenience store and petroleum marketer. His Convenience Store Solutions blog appears regularly on CSDecisions.com. He can be reached at (678) 485-4773 or via e-mail at [email protected].