Day 1,286 – Finding Joy in the Journey – Wednesday – 5/12/2021
Giving or Taking?
Giving or Taking? “Money is waiting for you” – the subject line of a message in my email box. It was from PayPal – yes, the real PayPal. This was not a scam. Of course, I was curious on who it was from. It was from Jake (he had a last name but that doesn’t matter). I don’t know Jake, so why would he be sending me money? So, I emailed him and asked if he was looking for a different Callie Teegardin. He was so grateful to hear from me. In PayPal, you have an option to refund a payment instead of accepting it. That money from Jake was not mine to “take” and so refunding him was the only option.
This whole scenario got me thinking about this notion of “taking”. It’s easy, when you think about taking, when it’s money that is truly not yours. Though there are other areas in “taking” that are so not black and white.
Recently I’ve seen a lot of “taking” when it comes to business. I know many people who have some aspect selling involved in their career/business. I love sales and I love the type of sales I’ve chosen as my primary occupation. Though I have never liked the “taking” that I see that happens. When I was in corporate, I never left to go a different company in the same industry. I didn’t think that was right. I couldn’t leave one company and tell my customers oh, I told you that company is great but now, this one is better. It never sat right.
And I get it, people leave companies for all kinds of reasons. We each have the right to go where it makes sense for us. I completely get that.
Giving or Taking?
What I don’t get is why when someone leaves, they try to focus on “taking” from their counterparts. Take those with you that you personally sponsored though going after your side line, crossline and upline’s customer and affiliates, by telling that person why the new company is better than the old company – well your “taking” – sorry, but you really are. Disparaging a company by saying, the new company is better because…., you are only saying that because you are trying to “take” people from the other company. It may be better for you, but you don’t know if it’s really better for them. It’s your opinion. There are plenty of people to talk to without going after the business of your friends. When you do, you are focused on the best interest of you, not everyone else. And in my book, that is “taking”.
You can give or you can take. When you give, God gives back. When you take, you may have short term success, you may even have monetary success, though is a person who is focused on taking, truly successful? Because to me, success is about more than just money. It’s all aspects of life including respecting the relationships and the people in your life.
There are times in my life that I have definitely been more of a taker. I’m not perfect. I am human. Though I try to live my life focused on giving and being aware of when I am taking from others – let it be from their check book, their time, their relationship, or their resources.
