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Everyone has a story and every story is worth listening to. Listen to life stories and become a part of peoples story by listening to them.
You can learn something from everyone you meet. Some lessons are positive and some are negative; you learn what to do from some and what not to do from others. But, these lessons can only be learned from listening to others. And, by listening you deepen relationships with people, which is how God designed us and calls us to live. I listened and shared for three hours tonight with a Major whom I really didn't know well prior to tonight. But, now I have a new appreciation for him and he will remember that I care enough to listen, which will only lead to more and greater opportunity to walk with him in the future. Take the time to listen to peoples stories. It is meaningful to them and will prove meaningful to you.
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Always work on being a good listener. Many times, people will need a certain healing that will come only in the form of a listening ear and a caring presence.
Just this week, for example, after a full day of work I stood with a man for more than three hours and just listened to him as he talked about the woes of his marriage. We stood together on a concrete floor until past 11 o'clock at night simply because he needed a listening ear and a caring presence. It is rare indeed to find someone who not only listens, but listens well. Listen closely, carefully, and intently when others are talking to you. It will not only endear you to them, but also add to your reputation and character as a close and trusted friend and confidant. Learn to "nest" your present actions within the scope of your future goals.
In other words, look at what you're doing now not primarily in terms of present benefits, but in terms of how they will help fulfill your future goals. The day in and day out routine and monotony of life can drag you down and suck the life out of you if you're not careful. This can lead you to for sake what are you doing because you don't feel like it's benefiting you were helping you at all. However, if you line up what are you doing in terms of how you plan to benefit from it in the future, it will provide extra motivation to finish. For example, education can grind you down between the reading, writing, lectures, class work, and everything else. If you are not careful, you can "take your eyes off the prize" and give up too quickly. instead, enjoy the present and learn what you can from it, but constantly put in front of yourself what this education will allow you to do in the future. Keep your goals as a carrot dangling in front of your face so that, even if your legs get tired, you keep pushing and moving forward to get the carrot. This will keep you pressing on toward the future and constantly improving yourself, and also provide motivation for the present, which can feel like a grind many times. Don't trust people too quickly, and don't expect others to trust you quickly, either. Trust is developed over a long period of time, and must be earned through the proving of your character in a variety of situations with someone.
It can be frustrating when you feel like you've done more than enough to earn someone's trust and yet they don't trust you as much as you think they should. Just be patient. Just give it time. Both your true character and their true character will gradually emerge as you continue to develop your relationship together. Let your character speak for itself and you won't have to convince them that you're trustworthy. |
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