When things go away, I appreciate them more. So often, I lose sight of how much I have simply because it’s right in front of me. I’m too close to it to appreciate its true meaning. Last week, a client workshop took me away from my routine. Having been camped in Chennai for a while now, we had fallen into a pattern. This pattern interruption turned out to be invaluable. (I often find that in a coaching session, too, this happens, an insight emerges that serves as a pattern breaker, and that is so empowering.)
I packed my bag, said my goodbyes to dad, mum, and my sister, and headed off to a city hotel close to the venue of the workshop. The workshop was in the same city, but quite far away from where we were staying. Therefore, the plan was that I would spend two nights in the hotel and fly out to Delhi the next morning. A room service dinner with my laptop for company went by without me noticing much other than my mental rehearsal and preparation for the next day’s workshop.
After an early morning walk, I was having tea when Dad called. We chatted, and he said he missed me and wished we could spend another evening together, since we were still technically in the same city. I explained the logic of why I was staying at the hotel, and he said he understood. I went into the shower, turned in the hot water, and all my logic thankfully evaporated. It was replaced by a feeling that was so clear and strong. Seconds later, I wrapped a towel around myself and stepped out to make a phone call. First to cancel my room booking for that night and then book a taxi to take me ‘home’ to have dinner with dad.
It was a truly special ‘ordinary’ evening. I had not told them I was coming back. When I rang the doorbell and walked into the room, my heart was full. To see Dad’s face light up like a kid. To experience Mum’s excitement and my sister’s happiness to see me was a gift. The gift we all lose sight of with proximity and routine. A day away (and the prospect of many more) possibly reminded us all of how special it is to get family time together.
It was also a reminder to pay attention to all that I have – what’s right in front of me, which I’m taking for granted. So many wonderful people – bosses, colleagues, friends, clients, coaches, who have rallied around me and my family. They all came into my vision again, and I remembered to value and appreciate all of them. Their silent and strong presence has helped me and my family, and the gift of another dinner with dad and mum and my sister brought all of it back into sharp focus.
A bit like the value of a good, strong reputation. It’s so easy to lose sight of its importance and true value, till it’s tarnished. When all is going well, it’s just another ‘good reputation day’ and then suddenly a storm hits and the reputation dulls. That’s when its true value is truly appreciated by an organisation or a person. So easy not to pay attention to the everyday work that goes into nurturing and maintaining that reputation. The planned, sustained effort to build and maintain a two-way engagement and relationship with key stakeholders. This is the boring, everyday work of nurturing reputation. It’s not only the big shiny moments that matter, it’s the coffee meeting with and the quiet conversation that hold it all together. Don’t take the next interview, Instagram reel, LinkedIn post, town hall, team off-site, or quarter results call for granted.
It’s so easy to lose sight of how important those moments are. Sometimes it’s not about doing the most efficient thing. It’s about doing what feels right. The efficient logical step was to stay in the hotel. It just felt right to have dinner with the family. Similar moments confront us in corporate life. Should we do the meeting online, or do we get people together? Do we do the product recall or wait it out and hope the problem subsides? Doing the right thing may not always be the most time and cost-efficient, but it is always the most effective.
Pause and ask yourself- what is right and what is right in front of you? That something or someone who may have become invisible because they are always there with and for you. Don’t take anything or anyone for granted. Grab the moment and be grateful for it, and always go the extra mile.
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