Today Was My Youngest Son’s High School Graduation. It Is A Mile Marker, To Be Sure, Not Only For Him But For All Of Us In His Life. As The Four Of Us Drove To The Ceremony At 8:30am This Morning, I Reflected On How Many Times He And I Had Made This Drive To School. Many Times, Sitting In The Car – Him With Headphones, Me Listening To Some Inspirational Podcast (And Sometimes Going Through The Dunkin Donuts Drive Thru) – We Settled Into The 45 Minute Drive Together. Not Really Saying Much, Just Smiling And Giving Each Other That Precious Morning Space.
The past four years, I have seen this young man grow into something special. During our drive this morning, we reflected on just his last year, and when we started listing out all the changes, challenges and triumphs he had gone through, it was fantastic! There were so many things: we moved in the middle of a semester (not by choice) into a new house across town, he worked his first full-time summer job across from Wrigley field, he started writing songs, then performing them, and now he’s graduating from a Military High School and has an internship at a Music Studio.
And as I rattled off all these accomplishments & pitfalls, I wondered how many of us take the time to reflect over our last year and acknowledge just how far we’ve come? I know I certainly haven’t! So, while I was sitting in the graduation audience, waiting for things to commence, I thought about my own last year. And wowza! Things have changed, for the better mostly, but any kind of change is hard.
Buying a house, moving my family, up-leveling my 9-5, watching my coaching business grow and my clients achieve so much more in their lives has been terrific! And the one thing I am most proud of? These two boys of mine! They have arrived at their own place of passion, doing work they love – @ 18 & 21, what?!
Here’s what I’ve learned, you are never too old, it is never too late and you are at the exact right place, right now. Do I wish I would have had a coach at 18? Maybe. Did I absolutely coach all of my son’s friends at his graduation party – uh, yeah, I did! Did every single one of them hug me good bye and whisper thank you – yes, they did:)
If you are a coach, a leader, a boss – lead those precious beings in your life who look up to you, be that your kids, your friends, sometimes your parents & those you work with everyday. Sometimes leading looks like listening and just agreeing with how they are feeling, sometimes it means speaking truth in a way that’s different than how they see it. And it always means being kind, considerate, and loving.
Isn’t that what we all want?
