The best way to say thank you
A couple of weeks ago, I was on a camping trip with a bunch of people.
As I was traipsing along on one of our hiking excursions, an amazing idea hit me! I knew exactly what I wanted to do, who I wanted to do it with and exactly how I wanted to do it. Only problem was I didn’t know how to get started.
Luckily, two steps ahead of me, was the friend who had organized the whole trip. He just happened to be a kick-ass life coach whose whole business is centered around helping people break through their perceived limitations. So later that evening, I casually wandered over to his campsite, and nonchalantly asked him if he’d be willing to listen to my idea and share any thoughts he had.
Within ten seconds, he’d solved my problem. And for the next twenty minutes, he shared with me a host of other information that is probably worth big bucks to the people who work with him.
I thanked him, gave him a hug and felt like I was floating on cloud-nine as I walked back to my tent. As I sat down to take notes on all that had transpired, I felt this overwhelming sense of appreciation.
I wanted to run back to him and tell him how awesome, amazing and out of this world cool he is, to squeeze him, and bake him a cake or something. (I have and have had many amazing people in my life, so I feel this way often – you should see some of the gushing love notes I’ve written to friends, old bosses and even my nutritionist. But rarely do I feel like my expression matches all the love and gratitude I feel inside, so I keep it bottled up, not quite sure what to do with it.)
But then the thought hit me, the best way I can say thank you (besides saying thank you) is to actually take what he had shared with me and do something with it.
I thought about the times, that friends and clients have come back to share stories of how something I’ve said inspired them to try something new. And I always feel this mixture of deep gratitude and giddy excitement – a unique sense of exhilaration – that reminds me how happy I am to be alive.
So here I am, sharing with you what’s true for me.
Something I have so often been scared to do.
And in this, my words and actions become a prayer, a thank you note to so many…and hopefully, as needed, an inspiration to many others.