Happy Monday! I shared this story in my newsletter [Creating Your Own Path] this month and I loved it’s life lesson so I wanted to share it with you. It was sent to me by one of my clients:
"How often do you let other people’s nonsense change your mood? Do you let a bad driver, rude wait person, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day? Unless you’re the Terminator, for an instant you’re probably set back on your heels. However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly she/he can get back her focus on what’s important.
Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson. I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab. Here’s what happened. I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station. We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car’s back end by just inches! The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us.
My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was friendly. So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!"
And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck." Some people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them, they’ll dump it on you. When someone wants to dump on you, don’t take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You’ll be happy you did.
How often do you let Garbage Trucks run right over you? And how often do you take the garbage and spread it to other people: at work, at home, on the streets? Make a commitment today to stop doing this. The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day. They take this in stride and move on to what’s truly important in life. Imagine what would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by? Here’s my bet. You’ll be happier. Love the people who treat you right. Forget about (forgive) the ones who don’t."
Have a great week!
Here’s to having a career you love,
Hallie Crawford
Career Seekers Coach
