60 minutes & Life's Hourglass-
After a lazy afternoon of football & a Saturday saying my goodbyes to an elderly aunt with terminal cancer; either God, simple fate, or some crazy circumstance prompted me to surf over to 60 minutes. Leslie Stahl was interviewing & testing (5) Memory Savants (The Gift of Endless Memory) that each had a gift for remembering virtually every detail of their life with near perfect clarity. Strangely enough, my Saturday was spent listening to numerous stories offered by my aunt & Grandfather whereupon I found adolescent omnipotence raising its head. By that, I mean that I considered myself too young, bored, or too good to pay serious attention to portions of their stories. How often have we all found this behavior jumping up when it shouldn't? I dare say it is a common occurrence and one that we should forgo to change, especially as it relates to our businesses.
As I watched the TV and recalled my day with my ailing aunt I realized the fault in my behavior and thankfully was able to clearly remember it. Am I that way all the time? No, absolutely not however, what if I remembered every detail of every day that I lived without choice in the matter? Would I conduct my relationships differently? And how would I view my past thus far? The answers for me are fairly clear. I would NOT hold many of my own conversations & relationships in high regard.
At what point in our lives does the memory of what we do, have done, and will do become more important than the immediate moment at hand? For me, and I'm in my 40's, it has been only recently that I've truly paid attention. For others, maybe it is younger or worse, even older. However in business, friendship, and family the importance of realizing that we are not omnipotent and that our Hourglass of Life has a finite number of sand crystals should be an epiphany.
Look at yourself and scrutinize: your business, your marketing plan, your sales pitches, the relationships that you have, and those that you aspire to attain and think about how you would remember your actions if a clear & distinct memory of these events was a given. Throughout the 60 Minutes article, I asked myself how these Savant's lives were affected by this gift when finally Leslie Stahl asked my question and received this profound answer: "I live every day knowing that I will remember it in near perfect detail which forces me to live each day as well as I can." A simple and overused phrase until you consider clarity of memory.
May 2011 be the Year of Clarity for the Spray Foam Industry.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year
Joe
International Mobile Equipment
