Everyone has their own thing. Something that they see to be their Mount Rushmore. Their matter of utmost importance. Their sole passion in life. Something that they can’t live without.
To some, it means the world to them. To others, it’s simply trash. Nothing to get too excited about. Everybody is different. Everyone comes with their own perspective.
I deal with many different customers in my business. There are “huge” customers that order in container loads. There are “small” customers that order just pallet quantities. Big and small is all relative. It’s all in the eye of the beholder.
I have my way of judging whether a purchase order is considered large or small. It’s mostly based on the amount of money I’d make on the order. Is it large enough to warrant a wealth of my time and commitment?
I have some “smaller” customers that demand a lot from us. They ask for documentation. They ask for updates on a weekly basis. They handle their business like it’s the utmost importance to them. Even though their business is only considered a trifle for my business’s bottom line. It’s all relative.
Sometimes, I chuckle a bit internally at how important they think their business is. To us, again, it’s just a small chump change of earnings. But, we still try our best to service them to the best of our abilities. We handle the business from their perception. From their point of view. As if this deal is their Mount Rushmore. The most important thing they can handle up to this time.
I guess that’s the way we prioritize our customers. That’s the way we handle it. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Similarly, something we deem to be unimportant could possibly mean the world to somebody else.
So, make every instant count. See things from other people’s perspective. Make them realize that what they do matters. What they say matters. What they feel matters. It’s not make or break by any means. But, it does count for something.
This is the perspective we hold when dealing with “smaller” customers. The requests they make may seem inconsequential to us. But, it means the world to them.
Similarly, small gestures of kindness you make towards others could mean nothing to you. But, it may or may not have a lasting impact on the recipient. So, it’s good to see this from another’s perspective. It’s good to view everything as someone else’s Mount Rushmore. Someone else’s Super Bowl. Someone else’s NBA championship.
My Mount Rushmore used to be all about Toastmasters. I attended meetings consistently. I believed in their mission to empower people and their public speaking and communication abilities. I crafted speeches during my spare time. And did what I could to give back to the organization and the community.
It was my “everything”. My meaning. My purpose. My event of grand importance. For me, I could see the value in improving people’s lives. The value in improving someone’s communication skills. After all, we need to communicate wherever we go. Wherever we are, that’s a given. And because of my own struggles with social anxiety, I found it a meaningful cause to contribute to and to believe in.
And for a while, that was my Mount Rushmore. And I’m glad that I spent so much time and effort contributing to a cause that I was so passionate about. Nowadays, I’m not as active in the club as I used to be, but I still appreciate its existence. I still savor the time I get to contribute to its weekly activities. I still try my best to give back to the best of my abilities.
But, it’s not as important as it used to be to me. Not necessarily in a bad way. Just the tides of time have changed, and I find myself more busy with family commitments, rather than extracurricular activities.
So, people’s Mount Rushmore can change over time as well. And who knows, maybe another Mount Rushmore will come galloping into my arms. I will see something else as a purpose worth fighting for. Worth spending my time towards. Worth contributing towards.
And it’s fine if some people don’t view Toastmasters the way I view it. It’s absolutely fine. Some people view politics as their Mount Rushmore. Some people are liberals. Others are conservatives. Both sides have passionate arguments that they can make that they attach grand importance towards. And that’s fine as well. Everyone has something that they see as a grand case. As a big deal.
That’s who we are as human beings. The Mount Rushmore of ideals is sitting in the eye of the beholder. One can view this as their everything. The other can view that as their everything. But, that’s where empathy and compassion can go a long way.
If we can take the time to view how seemingly trivial things seem to other people, maybe we can see that people’s viewpoints change. And we can approach every little idea - as seemingly insignificant as it may initially feel - with the knowledge that it may be of grand importance to someone else on the other side of the world.
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