Pop-Pop’s recovery has been a true miracle. Actually, we all believe Pop-Pop has had very special angels watching out for him throughout this whole ordeal. You see, Pop-Pop lives alone and had he been home at the time of his heart attack, he never would have made it. Luckily, however, he was out having dinner with friends and it just so happened there were not one, but two paramedics at the dining hall present when he had his heart attack. And it just so happened there was a defibrillator there as well which they had to use to revive Pop-Pop three times before he stabilized. There is really no reason this man should be alive, and yet I saw him with my own eyes yesterday sitting up in bed flirting with the nurses.
One of the reasons I think Pop-Pop pulled through is because of his zest for life. Pop-Pop is someone who always has a twinkle in his eye. He always has a story to tell, he’s always curious, and he loves people. While he’s been recovering he gave a list of all the people that should be contacted to let them know he was doing ok. This list was not limited to close friends and family. His list included people like the receptionist at his favorite restaurant. You might think that’s going too far, but I can guarantee you those people care and will want to know about Pop-Pop. And the reason they care, is because Pop-Pop cares about them and shows a genuine interest in their lives. He makes an effort to stay connected. In fact, Pop-Pop is still pen pals with folks he met at our wedding 20 years ago! He keeps in touch.
As entrepreneurs we can all take a page from Pop-Pop’s play book. I can garauntee you if you spent half the time Pop-Pop does connecting with people, showing genuine interest and staying in touch, your business would boom. We all like knowing someone cares about us, about our lives, about our businesses. We respond to people who show they care. How do you think your potential clients would react if they felt you were trying to make a real connection with them, if they felt you really cared about them as people and if you made an effort to stay in touch?
The day after Pop-Pop went into the hospital I opened my mailbox to find a birthday card from him. Obviously, it had been sent a day or two earlier, but it was especially poignant, as you can imagine, to see that card sitting there knowing Pop-Pop might not make it. To the very end Pop-Pop is reaching out and touching lives. How about you? What are you doing to let those in your life and in your business know you care? What are you doing to take the extra step to engage people? If you had to score yourself right now, how you would do? Not everyone can be like Pop-Pop, but we can all do more. We are not promised a hundred tomorrows, so right now make a small commitment to try a little harder, reach a little further and touch a little deeper into the lives around you. I promise if you do, your business will flourish, but more importantly, so will your life.
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