Thankful Thursday: Easy Does It

For most of my life, I've been a pretty easy-going person. I get along with most everyone, and I really don't tend to hold grudges. When you work in sales, all of this combines to be a tremendous help out in the field.

Yesterday, I had a meeting at work with a client where we had some miscommunication toward the beginning of the project. The main contact that we were working with starting to become overwhelmed with the amount of attention that we were showing his way (along with the corresponding pressure to get certain things done on time), and actually ended up passing his responsibilities with the project onto a completely different team. This was a major shift in focus for us since we had been relying on this one person for most everything having to do with the project, and now he was essentially washing his hands of it.

Now, I'm not sure specifically what led to this ultimate decision. I'm not going to into any details about the incident because this really isn't the place to hash out those issues. It just struck me how that relationship changed so suddenly and thoroughly: one moment this person was our main guy and would do just about anything to help us out, and the next moment, he doesn't even want to answer a phone call. It's just mind-boggling how changes like that happen so fast sometimes.

Situations happen almost daily in this job and in this life that really push my buttons. There are incidents constantly that, for some people, would cause them to lash out and go running in the other direction. But for whatever reason, the way that I'm wired is different. It takes more than what the average person would consider maddening for me to get angry. It takes a long, sustained period of frustration for me to start to show signs of losing it. It's part of the reason that I'm able to be a calming influence in the lives of those around me. Because I'm so laid back and easy-going, I'm able to impart that spirit to others. Sure, every now and then I'll have a bad day and I'll let it get to me, but the vast majority of the time, I'll let it roll off, push it aside in my mind, and move on.

I'm thankful for that. I'm thankful for the ability to just let things go. So often in life we get wrapped up in what's happening and focus on details that, in the big picture, really won't matter. I'm glad that I can see beyond that most of the time and try to remember what's important, to be able to help Meghan relax after a stressful day, to make a joke when my sister comes home from work with the weight of her world on her shoulders. That easy-going nature is part of what makes this house a home, what makes me good at what I do, and what makes me who I am in general... So thanks to God for giving it to me.