On being of service

If you’re getting swept up in the spirit of 2022 and the holiday season, and with the New Year and its resolutions right around the corner, you might be getting the nudge to give back, to volunteer, to be of service.

I’ve had many conversations lately with people who “want to volunteer more” next year. They tend to say this with a guilty, guttural sigh where it’s clear right away that they know they should do this, but also know it isn’t going to be that much fun. It’s going to take time. It’s going to take energy. It’s not going to be convenient.

And I’m right there with ‘em. I don’t wanna do anything that takes my time, my energy, and isn’t even fun!

But I was reminded recently about something: service doesn’t have to suck.

For some reason we’ve convinced ourselves that service must be exactly this: inconvenient, energy-draining, unfun. Why? When you make someone laugh, when you perform well at work, when you visit family who misses you for the holidays. What do we call that?

I’m not saying a lighter approach to service should stop you from feeding the hungry, spending time with children or animals, or donating your time or money. Not at all. I’m just curious how a service-minded approach to things you do in your daily life could improve your mindset, your confidence, your stress levels, and maybe even your willingness to be of service on greater levels.

So some questions for you this week:

• What are the ways you’re already of service to the people in your life?

• How can you think about being of service to your client, instead of trying to tell them the right answer?

• How are people in service of you throughout the day?

Go get ‘em this week.