Reach Out to Really Connect With Someone Today
By Sandy Schroeder
I know we all connect and reconnect endlessly with our electronic devices, but I am talking about that one-on-one, eye-to-eye, smile-to-smile connection that you can make with another human being in a real place in the real world.
How It Works
I made one at the post office yesterday, standing in line to ship a package priority mail. The lady behind me smiled, nodded, and then complimented me on my oversized tote. It’s one of my favorites and I was pleased. I beamed back, and we spent the next few minutes talking about life, traffic, and post office parking.
Often, when I go to the local market, which some people still do in spite of the incredible wave of direct-to-your-door-delivery now available, I have a favorite checker who understands one-on-one connections, too.
She always has a smile, and often extends a compliment. She’s all about making each of her customers feel special even though she has probably been on her feet for hours, even though she often waits on rude and demanding people, or may be pressured by her boss as the grocery business lurches forward facing its latest challenges.
The only time I saw her not smile I had to ask if she was OK. It turned out her mother was in a temporary care facility for a fall, and she was very worried. The next time I saw her, the smile was back, and she said her mom was home!
How Smiles Connect
In both of these cases, reaching out to someone depended on compliments, smiles, and casual conversation. But each time it made the day a little lighter, a little better for each of us. Take your kids along to pick up the pleasures of reaching out. They will quickly learn how to make someone smile as they watch you.
At today’s pace, it is all too easy to simply surge forward, oblivious to most of the world around us, clinging to our phones, as we respond to a stream of demands from home, work, and the community. If we are not careful, we may have to take classes on reconnecting with real life as the skill simply fades away.
A friend of mine, who is often amazingly wise, often grins, and mutters, “Progress is killing me.”
Indeed! Progress is a double-edged sword. It can be incredibly wonderful, but also quite seductive, luring us into increasingly isolated behavior.
Trust me. You won’t lose any real time if you pause to connect one-on-one. In fact, you may pick up a lot of momentum as you let go of stress and live a little lighter.
To learn more about your health and wellness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Coppell, Tex.