My wife and I attended a party several years ago. As soon as we got in the car to go home, my wife launched into a conversation about something that happened at the party. "How crazy was it when people were talking about xyz money topic? They sounded insane, didn't they?"
"Yeah, that was pretty wild," I responded.
"Why didn't you say something? Why didn't you tell them they were wrong?"
"They didn't ask. I would have happily shared my opinion on the subject, but I don't think they wanted it. And if they didn't want it, it would only have caused harm for me to chime in."
I didn't always feel this way. In fact, for a long time, I thought it was my solemn duty to chime in with my opinion whenever the opportunity arose. After all, these are topics that people pay me to engage in. Sharing my perspective was a gift to them, I believed. Boy, was I wrong!!!
I have a saying that's a derivative of something I often hear from my friend, Gary Hoag. "I'm called to serve those who wish to be served." I've humbly realized I don't get to decide who desires to be served and who doesn't. Some of the people I most thought I should serve don't actually want to be served.....and I've grown to be okay with that. While I could dwell on that, I need to focus on those people and organizations who do wish to be served. My job is to simply serve them well.
I'm heading to West Texas this week, ready to serve an oil services company with whatever time, insight, skills, energy, experience, and influence I have. Would I ever have imagined 10 years ago that I would be serving an oil services company in West Texas? Not a chance! This is one of the most beautiful dynamics of having an open-handed mentality toward our work.
There's only so much of me to go around, so I ought to dedicate it to those who wish to be served. It's a path filled with meaning, impact, and fulfillment. I thoroughly enjoy knowing that I'm engaging with receptive audiences who value what I bring to the table.
This exact sentiment applies to you, too! There's only so much of you go to around. Make sure you're serving those who wish to be served. For many of you, that means continuing to do exactly what you're doing! For others, though, it might mean taking a hard look in the mirror and making some difficult decisions. You have something beautiful and powerful to offer the world; be sure it's being focused in the right direction.
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