One day last week I was having one of those days. Everything seemed a bit meh, there wasn’t much to look forward to and while I was enjoying my client work everything else felt like a slog.
To top it all my new office is finally finished and so I was looking at the pile of boxes that needed sorting through and putting away, the sort of job I really hate doing.
Towards the bottom of the first box I found a pile of old papers, including an ancient FT from the day I qualified as an accountant and they printed my name along with the other passed finalists. Needless to say, it hadn’t been opened since then and was pristine. In central London you used to be able to get the next day’s newspapers hot off the press from around 10pm. So I remembered the agony of spending the evening in a pub, counting down the hours while waiting for the papers to arrive, desperate to know whether I had passed and the sheer joy of seeing that I had. I love a bit of nostalgia and my name isn’t often in print so I decided to keep it.
Next was a crumbling plastic folder containing a few yellowing, fading faxes from 32 years ago. ‘Straight in the bin’ I thought to myself at first but when I re-read them every one of those faxes made me smile.
Why?
Because every one of those faxes contained a nice message from someone in the organisation I worked in at the time, including someone very senior who had bothered to send me a thank you message after a difficult project.
I often tell clients to keep a file of emails and messages that people send them. They give you an instant lift when you read through them and remind you that things aren’t all bad and you are good at your job and other people appreciate you. The positive effect was there even 32 years on and even though the message was from someone I barely knew and had long forgotten.
If you don’t keep a file like that why not start doing so. Just save every positive email, text or WhatsApp message into a folder and dip into it whenever you need cheering up or a boost to your confidence.
And if you’re in a position to thank someone, send a nice message or pay someone a compliment why not do just that? You’ll make them smile not just today but every time they see your message.
What has made you smile lately?
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