I love seeing how appreciative Brendan Fraser has been, responding with gratitude to all the accolades for his acting role in The Whale. I saw an interview where he said to fellow actor Ke Huy Quan “We’re still here”. They recounted the story in an acting roundtable, both tearing up. It struck a cord with me.
People just want to be recognized. Maybe not all, but most. To be needed for a group or project or company, to have the chance to prove themselves, to show how passionate they are about what they do. This makes people feel connected, provides them a purpose, some dignity, some pride, a place in the world when it comes to their vocation.
Through all the layoffs, I’ve read many a post where some are pouring their hearts out after losing their jobs. Most are thankful, some are sad, others stressed out describing how they’re on the verge of a financial crisis. I also see fellow colleagues recognizing their colleagues, sharing kind thoughts about them, recommending them to others.
This is why I love being kind, as much as I can be, everyday. Someone once told me, in a slightly negative way, “you’re such a cheerleader”. Yes I am. Yes I am. Because through all that we do in our careers, to me life is more about how you treat people and how they feel about being around you.
You want to build a great team? Do it through empathy and kindness, combined with hard work and talent, and nothing can beat that. Help them with only the goal to see them succeed and you've defined what a true teammate is.
That’s all that most will remember about you IMHO. Not that you delivered a project on time (although these details are important to your job) or that your efforts helped a department’s success (although this too is critical to your role and its responsibilities). More so that you were benevolent, informative, compassionate, supportive, human.
Just my thoughts of the day. Have a great week everyone! :)
(not my photo btw- internet screen grab)