Who is invited to your table?
Who is invited to your table?
I think the table is a great analogy to articulate our circle. There are people who are part of our day-to-day life. As we travel through our days of family, friends, work, church, and social events, we invite people to join us. These are the people who see us, get our attention, our energy, our time, our conversation -- they get to share in the details of life. Not everyone we know or have known is invited to sit at our table.
One of the hardest decisions we make as adults is deciding who gets to join us. We begin this process gradually as we grow up but by the time we are young adults and stepping out on our own, we get full responsibility and authority to choose who 'dines' with us. Through the different seasons of life, the faces at our table change, but the vetting process remains. Here are some pointers:
✔️ Be shrewd and discerning. Not everyone is looking out for your best interest. There are friends who will betray confidences, work friends who will step on you to get ahead, family members who will seek to control, and love interests who will clip your wings. Be picky about who gets included at your table.
✔️ Choose wisely. Choose people who build you up, edify, encourage and have your back. Choose people who make you a better person and move you to be the person you envision yourself to be.
✔️ Be the person you would want to have at your table. Just as you are vetting those to include at your table, others are vetting you. Be a person that edifies, builds up and encourages. Be the person others can trust, who doesn't betray, ignore, or hurt those around you.
✔️ Remove people not filling the seat well. It's uncomfortable and difficult, but it's part of the journey of life. As people show you more who they are, be ready to transition them out of your circle if needed. It can be painful and difficult, but it leaves space for others who can contribute well to your life.
Life is hard and our tribe becomes important to navigating life well. Make sure your table includes the right people.
-Mindy Muller, CFRE, President/CEO of CDP
#friendship #worklifebalance #time #bandwidth#wisdom
