Are you winning?

Are you winning?

Last week I said “hello” to a Guest playing a slot machine in our casino.  He said “hello” back to me, cordially…and I asked how everything was going with his stay.

He never really looked up from playing his slot machine, though smiling all the while, and he told me that everything was great. 

Then…he asked me, “Are you winning?”  (He thought I was a Guest in the hotel…though I was of course, working.)

I immediately responded with a smile and almost a chuckle, “No…no…I’m actually working.”

He laughed…I smiled…then…….I thought about it, in that split, micro-second…it hit me – sure…I’m working, but maybe I am “winning” in the big picture. 

I may be working while my new friend playing slots in our casino (God bless him) and so many others are enjoying their vacation on the Las Vegas strip.  However, I realized that it’s truly a blessing and a privilege, just to be able to utter the words, “I am working.”

With so many Americans out of work, in between jobs, or struggling to make ends meet in these ever-so-uncertain times, if you have a job right now…you’re winning; at least statistically speaking.

OneMoreStep Thought for the week:  Even if things aren’t quite perfect…even with stressful burdens on our families and on each of us, as individuals…we should take a moment to reflect on what we DO have vs. what we DON’T have.  When we do, we may just realize that we are winning, in so many ways…and we’re not really “losing” at all. 

 {Even if this is a rough patch, on the job front or otherwise, DON’T GIVE UP…keep looking up.}

If you have a loving family, you’re winning.
If you have a job (even if it’s not perfect), you’re winning.
If you have a roof over your head at night, you’re winning.
If you have friends to call, spend time with, or laugh with, you’re winning.
If you have food on the kitchen table each night, you’re winning.

Are you winning?

One for the road…speaking of winning, ‘tis the season, football season.  Soon college football will be back in full swing, which means school is back in session.  It’s BACK TO SCHOOL time for everyone from students, to teachers, to football fans across the country.

In the spirit of 'BACK TO SCHOOL', we can all take this time to get back into the “swing” of things.  Remember back when we were students?  When school started back every Fall, we all of a sudden became MORE focused.  We had a regimented schedule and routine, which allowed us to listen and learn. 

Whether we’ve already walked across the stage or not, we can all take this time to (mentally) go back to SCHOOL:

S chedule – we can take this time to reevaluate our schedules, to ensure we’re spending time wisely.

C ulture – In school, we all had “School Spirit”.  That was our “culture”.  How about now? We can all reevaluate how well we’re “representing our nations”. How well are we embodying our company’s culture in our roles at work every day?

H omework – In school, didn’t we put in the time ‘after hours’, diving in, learning, practicing, and studying?  How about now?  How often do we “do our homework” for our current jobs?  How much better would we be and how much MORE value would we create if we did?

O rganized – When we’re in school, our routines with classes, assignments, and deadlines force us to become MORE organized.  What about now?  How organized are we at work?  In life? At home?

O bserve – Remember when we were younger…whether we actually had a passion for learning or not, we certainly paid a great deal of attention to everything around us.  We “observed” the people around us - our teachers, our coaches, our parents, and our surroundings.  What about now?  How well do we observe and notice what’s happening or not happening at work? At home?  If we did observe, how much better would we be?  How much more in tune with our teams would we be?

L isten & Learn – Just because we’ve graduated from school doesn’t mean that we should stop learning.  How well do we listen to our friends, family, coworkers, bosses, clients, customers, and Guests?  What if we did listen to them…how much MORE would we learn?

Go OneMoreStep this week…get in the winning spirit…’tis the season to go BACK TO SCHOOL.

Have a great day.

Taylor

"the moment you stop learning, you stop leading." -- Rick Warren