Today I’m grateful for the simple truth that focusing on others has shaped my journey.
Every time I’ve lifted someone up, I’ve grown too.
This week I’ve spent time with a couple of people I’m mentoring, and in one way or another, the question around my success came up—how I’ve achieved what I have. And the answer is always the same: my success has always been about other people.
It’s when I turn the focus off myself and really lock in on the people in my path—making sure they have what they need to grow and be successful—that I’ve done better. Sometimes that’s meant cultivating more patience.
Now, I’m not saying neglect yourself. You can’t give anything to anybody else if you don’t love on yourself and take care of yourself first. Sometimes, the most important thing is to be radically focused and disciplined on your own health so that you can pour into others.
But I am saying this: Don’t look at every interaction as a competition. You grow by helping others grow.
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” — Philippians 2:3–4 (NIV)