I like to ask people what they do to keep their lives in balance, and I usually get answers about family, spirituality, or hobbies. One day I asked Mariah, my massage therapist, and she said she had gone to a Laundromat over the weekend. Eeewwww, I thought, where could she possibly be going with this story? How do you go about making moments matter in a Laundromat?
Then she blindsided me with her insight. I learned about moments, and how to make them matter.
Then she blindsided me with her insight.
Her king-sized comforters were too large to wash at home, so she took them to a Laundromat. She met a Hispanic family there, and she tried to talk to them with her novice Spanish. Another young couple had a small puppy. It brought its leash over to her and dropped it at her feet. It was cute, and she patted its head as she chatted with the couple.
She called it a “Mayberry moment,” because it got her out of her element. She forgot about her stresses at home and work. Wow! We all have Mayberry moments in the simplest of places. You can even use them to improve your workplace culture. We just have to notice them and enjoy what they have to offer. Consider these to get you started:
- Watch a spider crawl up the wall in your workplace for a few miutes.
- Greet your employees (or neighbors.) Approach them with a smile and ask about their day.
- Watch a kid eat an ice cream cone and remember how that sticky sweet goo felt on your face.
- Close your eyes as you peel an orange. Feel the texture of the peel. Smell the essence. Let the juice run down your arm.
- Stop and listen to a street musician. Give him or her a dollar for the entertainment.
- Volunteer to do anything in your community! You’ll get more than you give.
Take advantage of these moments and find some life balance in the trivial. You haven’t peaked yet!