~In the Spirit of Thanksgiving~

I have never for a moment doubted the crucial role passion, honesty, and love play in the outcome of virtually every human endeavor! You can never ever go wrong when you consciously infuse enthusiasm, honesty and joy into what you do. You become an instant magnet for kindred circumstances and people alike! The uninstructed would marvel at the kind of outcomes you get not realizing that you are choosing to apply time-tested eternal and universal laws, most especially the Golden Rue! We all deserve to meet and constantly interact with happy, honest, and enthusiastic versions of each other.

In my craziness, I sometimes would wish that it is entrenched in some law as a fundamental human right – Right to present only your happy, honest, and enthusiastic self to each other, in all your dealings, and at all times. When we are passionate about what we do in business and in life, we usually see more successful outcomes than when we are constantly grouchy, whinny and negative! People see this and respond to us in kind! We all have personal trials, difficulties and challenges but I am a firm believer that in spite of our personal challenges, other people desire and (rightly) deserve to get happy, honest and passionate versions of “us” all of the time. After all, they played no role whatsoever in my personal challenges or difficulties. I train my employees to discard every personal challenges and unhealthy, negative emotions at the door of the office before stepping into the office so that the client gets the best version of them at all times. They are entitled to that!

Even though I have a website and spend so much on advertising for my firm, the most effective way for generating clients for me had been word of mouth through past clients or through people who have seen me in court and asked for my business card. They usually will say, “You seem very nice and passionate about what you do; can you help me with this matter”? Even though there had been few who attempted to negotiate the lowest legal fees possible because you are nice, it’s been overall a rewarding experience for me. On a personal level, I would travel to eternity with my hair dresser, not just because she does a really good job with my hair, but mostly because she is usually upbeat, happy, and passionate about her work! That kind of energy makes me go back to her even after being introduced to another hair dresser who charged almost half of what she charges me.

So last week, on the eve of Thanksgiving as I was picking up my Baby, Destiny, from the day care center where she is enrolled, I had stopped by to say a big thank you to her teacher Ms. Nicki. I have always told her I loved her energy and passion, and dedication but when my two year old started missing her Ms. Nicki at home, I just knew that I had to tell her how thankful I am that she is a part of our lives! For every mom or dad out here who know how difficult it is to drop off that baby and see him or her cry and know you would still leave them and go to work, having a Ms. Nicki in your life will not only eliminate that heart break but also re-affirm your belief in the existence of angels. (After all, aren’t we meant to be each other’s angels?).

So talking about Ms. Nicki, Ms. Nicki is not your typical teacher at all. Her passion and love for what she does permeates every single cell in her body and oozes outwards, literally infecting everybody in her path. She infected me too! My two year old loves her Ms. Nicki so much that when she wakes in the morning, she is excited and will keep saying, “I am going to see my Ms. Nicki”. During the weekend, it is always, “I love my Ms. Nicki”. It is so easy to see how she would be so smitten with her Ms. Nicki whom I also simply adore! It does not matter what Ms. Nicki is going through, whenever I am picking up my child, you’d see her smiling from ear to ear amidst her tired eyes. I just love her selflessness, passion and the pure love she brings with her every day to her job. So, on the eve of thanksgiving, I just had to tell her how thankful we are that she is a part of our lives through words that I wrote in a thank you card. I also included a little gift for her. She was so emotional when I gave it to her. (You must know by now that I was equally emotional)!

Anyway, this post is especially dedicated to all the Ms. Nickis’ out there who bring joy, passion, honesty, and undiluted love into their various life endeavors. They all have personal challenges and difficulties but consciously chose to discard those in order to give their personal best to others all of the time! That for me, is the hallmark of treating people exactly the way you’d want to be treated! It is priceless!!!

Nothing engenders success both on a business or personal level than this singular act of infusing love and passion to your work and your life!

I am thankful for all of you who read the blog and send your great insights and comments:-) Christmas is coming!!! Happy Holidays to you!