The One Piece of Advice to Make a Meaningful Life
Work is a rubber ball.
“Wisdom is your perspective on life, your sense of balance, your understanding of how the various parts and principles apply and relate to each other.”- Steven R. Covey.
The best advice in life come from people you don't even know.
Sound weird, but it is true. They don't come from friends or family members. They come from people that you saw once or twice in life. Maybe it is a coincidence, but they are the most valuable if applied in life.
I’ve been working in the restaurant business for years as a chef and waiter. I cannot complain about the money I was making. With the mindset to work a lot to make more and more and more money.
I am not a talkative guy, but I started to talk more with the customers. I remember once I wasn't feeling good there.
Some days, you want to get things done and go home. It was one of those moments when you pause to realize if the things you are doing are right or not if those activities will change something in your life.
I was working until 2 am. Coming home late and waking up early to spend time with my daughters. I wasn’t in a mood to play with them. I needed a big change.
One day a customer realized I wasn’t feeling good. Maybe my face or my eyes were reflecting some feelings. I didn't say anything to him. I am just trying to smile really hard. When he finished his food, he told me something that made me think and reset my thoughts.
He knew my name; he told me:
Hey Chamarro, listen carefully: “Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them — work, family, health, friends, and integrity… and you’re keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls — family, health, friends, and integrity — are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered. They will never be the same.”
Later on, I realized he took it from a speech by former Coca-Cola CEO Brian Dyson. But I was surprised. It resonated with me.
When I finished my shift that day, I was excited. He clarified my life.
I wasn't focused on other areas of my life, thinking that work and money are priorities in life. Please don't take me wrong.
I was conscious those areas are important. But there are other areas that I wasn’t giving the importance they required.
Work is a rubber ball
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” Robert Louis Stevenson
This is what I learned from that customer's advice:
I was crazy worried about my job. Certainly, I was grateful to have a job, but I wasn't happy there. Doing things that don't bring anything more than money to pay bills. Living the rat race on autopilot.
As he told me, work is a rubber ball it is truth. You can always get another job. We are scared to lose our job. But we never think about what is going to happen.
What is the worst case-scenario if that happened?
You will realize the worst-case-scenario is something far from your fear. You will find another job which can be better for your lifestyle and learn different skills. There is nothing that complicated in life. Everything is figurateoutable, everything.
The necessity will make your move, and you will get a job as soon as possible. Your worst fear is not that scary how you were thinking.
Family, health, friends, and integrity are made of glass
“You can’t truly be considered successful in your business life if your home life is in shambles.” — Zig Ziglar
The problem starts when you follow the money as a priority in life. Let me clarify this: money is good as a tool and gives us the freedom to choose. Everything depends on how you used it.
But when the money starts to interfere in other areas of your life like health or family, it becomes a real problem.
I was sleeping badly because my routine change coming home sometimes at 3 am. I needed a big change. I needed to organize my life and schedule.
I was following that path to work to make money. I was unaware that It was affecting my behavior with my wife and daughters. Playing with them was hard. I was tired every day. Sleeping a few hours and with a bad mood all day long.
In that rat race, the only activities used to make me feel happy were when I paid my bills on time.
I was unaware of things like:
- The energy to spend time with the family.
- Time to sleep and eat healthily. I was eating junk food all day long. My last meal was at 11 pm. Exercise once a week, which doesn't help at all.
- I was on autopilot. Without time to make a pause and meditate to check my goals. To see if I am really on the right path.
The truth is we are not focus in essential areas in life. And when we hurt them, the damage could be irreparable. They’ll never be the same anymore. Our job is not. We always can get it back.
Be open to listening to everyone
“You know why you have two ears but one mouth, so that you talk less and listen more.”― Abhijit Naskar
Don't just narrow the way to listen to only family and friends. In my case, I got better advice from people I saw once or twice in my life.
Because they are not in your box, in your environment. They are just from different places with different problems and around different people. They give you a clear opinion without thinking about whether it will work or not.
Remember that our problems are just tiny ones if you compare them with real ones.
I am now interested in getting comments or advice from people that I don't know. Because people I know give you always the same one.
In Conclusion
As I learn from that advice, the key is to have a balanced life. Write down what your priorities in life are.
Maybe you are single, your business or career, or start a new project or be a better person and learn more. Maybe be more spiritual and meditate more. Write down everything to clarify is an incredible tool.
Remember that family, health, friends, and integrity are the essential areas in life. Keep your focus on them.
The unique one which is replaceable is work.
