energy

The Power of Serving Others

/ Ken Blanchard

Our love and prayers are with everyone who is dealing with the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. So many are homeless as a result of this storm. It’s an awful situation but it’s amazing to see how people rally together to help each other in times like this. We saw it with Hurricane Katrina in 2005, with the fires here in San Diego in 2007, with Hurricane Sandy in 2013—and now it’s happening with Hurricane Harvey. We have seen and heard countless examples of people serving each other during this crisis—and I’m sure there will be more.

When someone shows up to help, they don’t say “Wait a minute—what’s your religion? What’s your sexual orientation? Who did you vote for?” People who serve others don’t come with judgment; they just reach out with support and love for their fellow human beings. I love what actress Sandra Bullock said when she donated a million dollars to the Red Cross for Harvey victims last week: “There are no politics in eight feet of water. There are human beings in eight feet of water.” Isn’t that great?

During times like these, when I’m watching the heroic efforts of people taking care of each other, I always think how great it would be if we behaved this way all the time. It shouldn’t take a crisis to bring out the best in people. What are some ways we can keep ourselves in that servant heart mindset when times are bad and when times are good? Imagine the difference we could make in the world!

For now, we need to keep focusing our love, energy, and prayers on all of the good folks in the communities hit by Harvey. Please consider donating any amount to the Red Cross (www.redcross.org), the Humane Society (www.humanesociety.org), or, to find other worthwhile organizations, go to www.charitynavigator.org to ensure your donation will be used to help people affected by Harvey.

We are at our best when we stand together. Keep pumping out the love and the prayers! Good on you all!

Be an Energizer!

/ Ken Blanchard / 8 Comments

Do you know someone who is an energizer? When somebody is an energizer, when they come in the room, energy starts to increase. People’s energy picks up. Do you know other people who, when they come in, the energy just gets sucked out of the room? Ha!  You know, there are people like that. Things just seem down when they come around. And those are the kind of people that you should be nice to, and love them, but don’t hang around them. The question is: Are you an energizer? Does people’s energy increase when you’re with them? When you come home, does the energy pick up or are you the wet blanket that just slinks in? I think it’s so important that you be an energizer and you gather people around you who pick up your energy. Because what really makes organizations great, and families great, is positive energy. And it takes energizers around people to make the energy come out in them, too. So that’s my message today. Be an energizer. When you come in a room, light it up! Make something happen. You don’t have to be an extrovert to do that. Just by your interest and your energy in terms of what you do can make a difference, people can see that, even if you aren’t being Mr. or Ms. Exuberant. Life is about positive energy. So energize people! Energize yourself!