Shaun's Thoughts: Living for others and making a difference

People. I just love people. I feel like I might have been put on this planet to love people. For many years, I only saw the good in people. 

When I became a manager, seeing only the good did not make for a good manager. I was forced to see the bad too. It broke my heart. People do so many bad and hurtful things to each other. It was a painful, heartbreaking time to realize that not all people are good. Especially when they are people who are close to you.

I’m all grown up now. I have to admit I still try to see the good in people first. Through the years, I’ve been part of groups that tell you what kind of personality you have. Mine have varied from a “softy” to a “lion”, and as a manager, I believe these qualities are imperative. 

I believe in leading by example. I believe the people who work around me know how I expect them to act, as well as how to treat others. There are times when I have to step out of my softy zone, and be a lion. Not a mean, nasty, bitey lion, but an assertive one, who looks a little bit stern when it has to. 

One of the things you also learn through personality tests, is how others around you score. 

You can then assess how you interact with them and why they respond like they do. Each of us handles situations differently. That’s what matters in life, and what says the most about you, is how you handle the things thrown at you. 

While lying in the hospital bed with cancer, I was able to thank the Lord for putting me in the path of the wonderful people I was meeting, from the housekeeping staff, the mailman, the nurses, physicians, therapists and the CNAs. 

I try to remember they each go home at night. They each have a story. Some good. And some really bad. But, here they are, sharing love with me no matter what is happening outside of these walls. I was amazed. And sad. All at the same time. 

This isn’t just in the world I inhabit. 

It’s all around all of us. We all have the opportunity to make a really positive difference in someone else’s life. After all, we are not here to live for ourselves and make ourselves happy. 

We are here to live for others, share love and make others happy.

How will you make a difference?