 by Jim Hinshaw
Just made a decision to leave my position at a company that I had been involved in for over 6 years, VP of Sales. It was time to leave, time to re-focus with my wife, go on some long walks, eat more meals together, all that important stuff.
But there are a lot of decisions that I had to make when you are leaving a job you love like I had, and much time spent in prayer. Here is what happened to me during this time. I am part of a prayer team in my Rotary group; we pray over funerals, weddings, births, illnesses, and even job changes. All sorts of things happen in life. So last weekend I shared that I was going through a time of reflection with my Rotary Prayer team; I needed help with the next steps. They were supportive and said that I have been praying for them for years; they are honored to be praying for me.
This is not just about them being prayer warriors, although that is really great. It is all about what happened next. i got a call on Monday evening, around 7:30 PM from a number I didn’t recognize. I answered, felt like I should, turns out it was one of my Rotary members calling, and will call him Andy, since that is his name. I answered, heard him say: “you guys go ahead, I will catch up in a few minutes”. I asked him how he was doing; he said he was in Chicago at a meeting for people who do what he does and going to dinner with a group of guys. He interrupted the dinner walk to call me and check in. I told him that no matter what happens next, the fact he gave me time to share what was going on in my life, actually took time out of a dinner meeting to call me in the evening, made me feel special.
Another moment that made a huge impression on me, one of the members of our church reached out to ask me how things were going, I had shared with our group that I had some decisions to make. I told him things were moving forward and I felt really good about it. He reached out again today, just to let me know he was thinking about me (praying for me).
I have been involved with lots of people as they go through life, giving them support and encouragement. And in many cases, reaching out later to let them know they are still on my list. This article is called, Whose Got Your Back? Who is on your list?
Most people we interface with today are going thru something, could be financial (that opportunity is on the rise), emotional, physical, health and family are also creating concerns for folks of all ages. In some cases, I do understand that these problems could be self-induced. That doesn’t make them any easier; life gets harder when you are facing a crisis of any kind.
So, this circles back to my article last month, when I shared my response to the question: How are you doing? When the person you are talking to says things like fine, OK, getting by, they may be lying. They could use help and support of any kind, just someone to listen to them can be a blessing. Turns out when you offer that sort of support; two things happen. They are encouraged and you feel better just by being involved.
My message this time is simple, start looking for a person going through something, then let them know you will help them get through it. Could be a neighbor, friend, co-worker, or even a family member. That last group is probably the most important, family members don’t always show how they are hurting, they don’t want to be judged.
Another reason this is a good idea is what we are going through with jobs and businesses. Many of us are facing terminations, layoffs, and demotions because the business is just not doing what it used to do, both in revenue and the bottom line.
Again, in my case, just got a handwritten card from one of my Rotary members, encouraging me to realize that I am part of a plan that may not be completely unveiled yet. Things are in play that will surprise me and delight me. I am ready, thanks for reading, we’ll talk later.
Jim Hinshaw has been a consultant to the trades for over 50 years. He has worked with companies from $250,000/year to over $500 million/year. He can be reached at salesguy12@gmail.com. Cell: 602-369-8097