Seize the Day. Add Value.
“To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts” – Henry David Thoreau.
There is a time of day when most of the world is still asleep. That moment is the most magical. If you have ever had the privilege of a game drive in Africa, dawn is when you see the most game. The bush alive, alert, moving. The world stepping into the day with intention before the heat arrives.
That is dawn. And it is my favourite time of the day.
I recall many mornings out on my bicycle, the cool air hitting my face and chest; at its coldest, just as the sun starts to show its first rays. Watching the horizon start to glow with hues of blue, red, orange, and yellow, all bleeding into each other. The birds' chorus building from a whisper into something glorious.
And then, out of nowhere, a presence alongside you.
Stan.
A former drill sergeant. A fellow rider with a particular gift. The gift of ghosting up silently behind an unsuspecting rider, then pouncing alongside and simultaneously unleashing his best James Brown rendition at 120 decibels:
"Whoa — I FEEL GOOD!"
Oh, the fun, the laughter watching as the unsuspecting rider levitated off the saddle.
But here is the thing about Stan. He wasn't just being funny. He meant it. Every single morning, without fail, Stan showed up to the day as it owed him nothing and he owed it everything. He was the living embodiment of Carpe Diem; not as a philosophy, but as a daily, deliberate act.
Seize the day. Grab it. Use it.
John Maxwell, one of the great leadership teachers of our time, taught me his Leadership Rule of Five. Five things to do every day, without exception.
One — value people and lead yourself first.
Two — think about how you can add value to the people around you.
Three — look for ways to add value to people.
Four — do things that add value to people.
Five — encourage others to add value to people.
Maxwell's heart was this: do these five things every single day, and you will fundamentally change the world in which you live. Not the whole world. Your world. The one you wake up to every morning at dawn.
His challenge, and mine to you, is simple.
Be a giver. Not a taker.
Every morning is a day full of promise. An opportunity to make a difference to someone in your life, someone in your circle of influence. Grab it. Use it.
Add value to yourself.
Add value to someone else.
That is the legacy worth building; not once, not when conditions are perfect, but every single day. One dawn at a time.
Be a plusser — a value adder.
This week's reflection:
Tomorrow morning — before the noise begins — what is the one intention you will set to add value to yourself and to someone else?
Gary Good
Founder — LeaderLegacy