I have received an overwhelming good response to my Monday Motivators of January 18 called Inspiring Others (full article below). I want to share one administrative subscriber's thoughts, building on what I wrote.

For some reason this issue of Monday Motivators has touched my heart in a special way. Just yesterday (Sunday) during lunch, my family and I were talking about individuals having jobs where they feel as though they are not making a real difference. I (and my family) all realize that any task, no matter how seemingly small, has value and "makes a difference." However, at the end of the day some tasks seem so mundane and routine and far removed from certain influence on people's lives.

The work alone isn't enough for me.

Monday Motivators

Inspiring Others

January 18, 2010

Dear Reader,

In early December, I took a trip to my hometown, Cleveland, OH. I was on Southwest flights both ways. If you have never been on Southwest flights, you are missing something because their flight attendants are like no other airlines. Southwest encourages their flight attendants to have fun, make passengers laugh, and ensure they have a great experience!

Well, my flight into Cleveland was the usual flight but nothing compared to my flight back to Las Vegas on December 7. One flight attendant in particular, Barbara, went way above her call of duty to make our 5 hour flight enjoyable. It first started with her great attitude. From the time I stepped on the plane until we departed, she smiled, laughed, and encouraged conversation with passengers. She took it upon herself to keep us entertained throughout the flight, which is not an easy task with adult travelers and for 5 hours! Do you know how hard that can be? Additionally, this was after an already 11 hour travel schedule she had been on.

Barbara was creative. I've traveled on many Southwest flights, but she creatively involved us in various "games" and activities that helped us learn about fellow passengers. She got various passengers to come to the front of the plane and either sing holiday carols or practice walking down the aisle for a wedding rehearsal. She had all the passengers pull their shades down and hosted various games using the attendant call buttons. We found out who was over 85 years old and who had been married the longest just by using call buttons. Talk about unique! While some passengers sat quietly with arms folded, most of them perked up and participated.

If I were to write a Monday Motivator about you, what would I say? In what ways do you inspire others? How do you go out of your way to make others feel good? Do you think of creative ways to involve people at work?

I believe that every person has the potential to inspire another. It's a matter of wanting to do it. It's a matter of really liking and wanting to help people. I believe that more adults don't step out because they are embarrassed. They are afraid that other adults will laugh at them or think them silly. Adults often talk about teenagers having to be alike and follow the crowd, yet I see adults doing the same thing.

This week see how you can inspire others. A few ideas are:

• Compliment a peer on a job well done.
• Give your boss a card for no reason.
• Send an inspirational quote or phrase to someone who needs encouragement.
• Ask a colleague to show you how they do something well.
• Do something nice for a stranger.
• Have a good attitude all day. It is contagious.
• Encourage someone who is wavering about attending a workshop or going back to school.
• Forward this Monday Motivator.
• Get Bertha Bully to laugh.
• Give a co-worker a great book.
• Doing something from your heart.

Life is about touching others and letting your inner light shine.

Sincerely,

Joan Burge
Office Dynamics