Wednesday, March 13, 2013

We Can't All Move Mountains, But We Can All Move Rocks

Last night, I had a conversation with my sister and it inspired me to write this blog.  There comes a point in our lives, or two, or several where we question our value in this world.  I think society places an emphasis on people who have done wonders to the extent that those of us who have not might not feel we have lived a life worth mentioning.  Stories of celebrities, the rich and famous, leading businessmen (and women), and those who lead a life of privilege flood our news feeds.  But does a person have to live the life of fame and fortune to make a difference, or an impact, in this world?

My answer is no.  Of course not.  I am not a famous celebrity.  I have never won a Nobel Peace Prize.  I don't own a Fortune 500 company.  I'm not some world renowned scientist.  And I may never be any of these things.  But I do know that I have made a difference or an impact in someone's life.  Maybe more than one person.

I work at a conferencing company (check us out at AccuConference.com).  Usually I answer the phones and help people resolve billing issues, schedule operator assisted calls, and create new accounts for our new customers.  I also act as an operator on some of our customers' calls if they request our operator assisted services.  There is one customer in particular that I remember doing a call for.  This customer holds a call every Christmas Eve to connect with her family that lives in different parts of the world.  This is the only time of the year this customer ever uses our services.  I was her operator for her call this last Christmas Eve, as well as the one before it.  But this last call that I had with her has stuck in my mind.  When I had her on the conference line, she told me before I connected her other family members that this call is the most important call all year.  It's the only call where she can gather her family together for Christmas.  And even though they might be thousands of miles apart, that one call brings them together on that special day.

After hearing this, I felt my heart grow a little warmer.  I thanked her for using our services for this special occasion and proceeded with bringing her family members in onto the call.  After everyone was connected, I stayed on the line a little while to hear them laugh and sing a Christmas carol in Polish (the grandmother of the family lived in Poland).  When I exited the call, I felt pretty good about the job I have.  It's moments like those that let me realize I am making a difference in someone's life.

Sure, the customer could have used a different conferencing service or a different operator for her call.  But I was the one on the call that day.  I helped her connect to her family.  And I hope that my co-workers feel the same way when they help a customer out with an issue or help someone connect to their conference call.  It's more than just a business, it's getting people connected.

Now, I'm not trying to make this into a promotion.  There's other ways I try to make myself feel significant in this world.  I do so with my writing.  Whether it's the novel I'm trying to finish up, this blog post I'm typing, or freelance work I do I like to believe that I am contributing my thoughts and ideas to the world.  That someone who reads my work will think "Yeah, that makes sense" or "That's ridiculous!"  Regardless if they agree or disagree with my thoughts, I want my readers to think or to feel some sort of compassion.

How else am I contributing?  Well, it seems more people are trying to make a buck these days, especially the direction our economy is going.  In these trying times, people are finding ways to make their own money. Have you noticed more people selling Avon or Pampered Chef?  What about people joining MLMs (Multi-Level Marketing)?  These are all different ways people are starting to make extra money on the side.  So what I have done to help them is I made a Facebook page called Grow Your Business.  The friends of mine who like this page and have a business that they would like to promote, I post a link to their site or make a post about what they are selling and how to contact them.  The more of their friends that they get to like the page, the more posts about their business I make.  So how does this help?  Well, it gets seen by more people outside of their friend's list on Facebook.  It's a form of word of mouth, and it's free advertising.

So you see, I'm in no way moving mountains.  But I am moving rocks.  And the more rocks I move, it might eventually build the mountain I've been longing to push.  If you've reached a point in your life where you feel like you are a non-entity, take a step back and really look at what you do.  You might have only smiled at someone, but that smile could have made a person's day.  Take it upon yourself once in a while to ask, "How many rocks have I moved?"