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Friday, October 6, 2017

Become A Person Others Want to Be Around

Paul, my older friend who refuses to retire, is the youngest thinker I know. He stays positive, a flexible thinker who wants to empower younger people. People love to be around the guy. In one of our mentoring sessions I asked him his “secret.”

He gave me absolutely the BEST ANSWER EVER!

He said, “Rob, I made the decision that I wasn’t going to suffer from Hardening of the Categories.

Hardening of the Categories?! OK, that was brilliant.

For many people, the older they get, the more opinionated they become. They begin to categorize conversations, perspectives, and even people. Soon there are only two ways: their way and the wrong way. We begin to avoid them.

Now enter the beautiful souls who grow older seasoned with grace, acceptance, care, and love. You know, the kind of awesome people who really listen, and grow, and don’t check their messages when they are talking to you. They are the kind of awesome human beings that we all want for grandparents. Paul is like that—I want to be someday.

Here is where it gets real… My attitudes today are shaping who I will become tomorrow. Is that who I really want to be?

My attitudes today are shaping who I will become tomorrow. Is that who I really want to be?

Let’s keep growing and getting better! Here are four ways to intentionally grow:

1. Judge ideas, not people. “I might disagree; help me to understand where you are coming from,” is a very powerful statement. It engages thinking people. “You’re wrong; I hate people like you,” is immature in any language.

2. Commit to lifelong learning. Remember, If you aren’t willing to learn, no one can help you. If you aredetermined to learn, no one can stop you.

If you aren’t willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can…CLICK TO TWEET

3. Mentor someone. We all want mentors! Read the HBR article, Mentoring Millenials. Or visit Mentoring.org. It will help you think differently about younger generations.

4.Learn what motivates others. You can start with Motivating People In Their Twenties (the people grew up with the Internet and the world virtually at their fingertips). Oh, and practice saying, “I’m not certain that I understand, but I want to. Will you help me with that?”

Bottom Line: Grow into the type of person whom others love to be around.

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