FRED Friday...Birthday Well-Wishes, FredShips, & A Team of Freds

FRED Friday…Birthday Well-Wishes, FredShips & A Team of Freds

Good People

Yesterday was my birthday.  Sure I woke up feeling a bit older…perhaps a bit wiser, after yet another year of things being up, down, and sideways.  However, I wasn’t really planning on celebrating too much for my 33^rd birthday…

By  7:30am, however, I had received text messages from some of my best friends, a text from my boss, phone calls from my two favorite women in my life – my girlfriend and my mom, and a OneMoreStep, collective FaceTime from two of my dearest friends (For the record, so I don’t have to hear it later, they were actually first, at around 6am…) – all wishing me a Happy Birthday.  So that was all really, really cool…and all of them made me feel great!

My old pal...

When I got to work, I stopped to say good morning to the team, as I always do, and I was met with smiles, “happy birthday” wishes, high fives, and hugs.  When I made it to my office, I opened the door to find my old pal, Mickey Mouse (a balloon, four feet tall) standing on my desk with “Happy Birthday T. Scott” written on my white board, and balloons decorating my office.

Later in the day, our team presented me with a custom made gift basket, the contents of which consisted of ...well... just the most thoughtful gifts…my coworkers and members of our team know I like to attempt to stay fit and eat healthy, and they know I get grouchy and irritable when I’m hungry.  So protein bars and whey protein to make protein shakes, along with a really nice shaker, were some of the marquee items in the basket.

They also included a Mickey Mouse business card holder and post it holder, several little energy booster concoctions (because they know I like to stay fired up), a Disney water bottle, and a Disney’s High School Musical – WILDCAT plush doll (which is hilarious and awesome on many levels).  After nearly two years, they all know (and most share) my love for the MotherShip, Disney. 

The entire team signed a birthday card…and they didn’t just sign their names.  Each person wrote something incredibly touching, wishing me a happy birthday.  They’re such special, thoughtful individuals that make up an incredible team.

In the afternoon, I was called to come out of my office, into a common area that we all share…to a group of coworkers caroling, “happy birthday” to me!  They had a birthday cake…but not “just any cake”.  My colleague and “partner in crime”, as we say, Sarah, took special consideration, went OneMoreStep, out of her way to get Mickey and Minnie cake toppers AND little mini palm trees…because she knows of my fascination with anything/everything tropical, Jimmy Buffett-ish.  Very, very cool…and it made for an extremely fun mid-day break.  I appreciated it.

More calls from family and friends came throughout the afternoon and evening.  Emails from coworkers who heard it was my birthday popped into my inbox.  My Dad…my sister…and more of the old crew called and sent texts.  Happy Birthday Facebook messages and Tweets rolled in as well, all wishing me a happy birthday.

Sarah crushed it on the cake

I don’t paint this picture of my birthday to brag.  This post is not about me.  It’s about the people that made me feel so…GOOD…all day yesterday.  I’m dedicating this Fred Friday to the friends, family members, colleagues, teammates, coworkers, peers, and leaders that made my little old 33^rd birthday, which would have otherwise been just a routine Thursday, a day that I’ll never forget.

The gifts were great, certainly appreciated, and I am totally digging them all (Ms. Pat Fitz – the i-Tunes gift card – MONEY!).  The cake was the bomb, and we devoured it ALL, in probably world record time.  (Great teamwork)  We had a blast with the Mickey balloon all day, taking The Big Cheese with us to meetings, taking pictures, and pretending to include him in our conversations.

The thoughts behind the gifts, however, made the real impact on me.  The genuine interest and thoughtful messages, phone calls, and notes were so touching…and they all made me feel special, valued, and loved…and what makes that so cool is that I love them ALL right back.  I only hope I can show them the same love and return the favor tomorrow…and everyday after that.

Fred the Postman is definitely proof that everybody makes a difference.  No matter how big or small the organization…no matter how significant or insignificant we think we are to our peers and leaders…we all make a difference.  As Mark Sanborn says in The Fred Factor, “The real question is…what kind of a difference are we making?”

I am so very thankful for the birthday well-wishes, true FredShips (friends that are Freds), and the entire team of Freds I am privileged to work with and for, every day.  You all made a true difference that mattered to me yesterday, on my birthday. 

I am 2,000 miles away from where I grew up in Kentucky…but all of you made me feel right at home.  Because of your Fredness, I am reminded that the grass is greener exactly where I am standing.  You truly made an otherwise ordinary Thursday, extraordinary.

“Isn’t it great knowing you have the ability to show others how to make the ordinary extraordinary?” – Mark Sanborn…The Fred Factor…page 96.

Thanks for being Freds!  Now I want to do the same…

Taylor

What is FRED Friday?

In my favorite book, The Fred Factor, Mark Sanborn tells an inspiring story of how a man named Fred goes OneMoreStep after OneMoreStep in his role as a Postman for the United States Postal Service.  I love this book.  Since my mom sent it to me in 2004, I've purchased the book for friends, coworkers, and girlfriends...I've even purchased and hand delivered copies of the book to several executives at both Wynn Las Vegas and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

Fred Friday is a series in which the OneMoreStepRevolution blog will showcase a real life "Fred" on select Fridays.   Reading The Fred Factor definitely leaves us with a desire to to be more Fred-like ourselves, but I also love looking for Freds.  Freds are everywhere. I love it when I experience a real life Fred.  I'm inspired just as I am every time I re-read the book.  I thought it would be fun to spread the magic of Fred to our OneMoreStepRevolution community.  Enjoy...  

Fun pics for the road...

Luckily I was already awake...or this would have been a scary wake up call, via FaceTime

The Big Cheese isn't my boss anymore...yet he still came to our staff meeting today.

We couldn't get anything done...with this guy micromanaging us.