“One of the sanest, surest, and most generous joys of life comes from being happy over the good fortune of others.”
—Archibald Rutledge
At each meeting of Women’s Referral Service, one of my favorite networking groups, we share with the others at our table about a topic of the day.
Whenever the topic is “Tell about your greatest business success,” I have noted with interest that people rarely focus on the award they won or the big contract they got.
They talk about what they helped others win. One after the other, with glowing smiles, each person mentions a particular client that they helped to solve a problem or gain a cherished desire.
Their faces shine as they tell their favorite story of the client they helped to win a $7 million contract, or the client they helped overcome their fear of public speaking who got a standing ovation. The energy of that joy permeates the room, and I feel it at all the tables.
People who can revel in other people’s happiness are the biggest winners in life. They’re winning vicariously all the time—it’s a constant adrenaline happiness rush.
That is the gift that keeps giving: When you help others, their win is your win. Their success is your success; their happiness your happiness.
When someone in my workshop walks into class excited over the good fortune that they just can’t believe happened to them, their excitement and joy spills into me and it is mine as completely as it is theirs.
When I attended the Worthwhile Referral Sources Annual Awards banquet one year, I clapped loudly for all my friends who won. One gentleman came up to me afterwards and said, “Sorry you didn’t win anything this year, Chellie.”
I looked at him in astonishment. “Four out of five of the top winners thanked me from the podium and said I helped them get where they were. I think I’m the biggest winner in the room!”
To know this joy is why teachers teach, and why parents are proud of their children. Because giving an assist is just as valuable as scoring points in the game themselves. Touchdowns are made by teams, not individuals. The quarterback throws the ball, but he has to have a receiver. And there have to be blockers to clear the path… it’s endless.
We are all in this together, and we need each other to be successful—individually and as a group.
Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. As a fellow human being, I participated in his adventure; I stood outside my house where I could see the TV and the moon in the sky at the same time. I watched him take that “one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Yes, yes! Me too, Neil! I’m there with you! My taxes helped build your ship. My aerospace scientist dad helped design it. Your win is my win. Send out spaceships.
Take time to savor your achievements and celebrate those of the others around you. Bask in the glory, then relax and enjoy the day.
Warm in the sunshine, chart the path of raindrops, learn from a book, channel surf the TV, listen to a teacher, marvel at a painting, ponder a philosophy, enjoy a movie, a comedian, or a play. Have dinner with a friend, join a sports team, indulge in a hobby. Walk on the beach. Invite someone else to walk on the beach with you. Feel blessed. Feel rich.
Every day you do this is living a rich life.
From Zero to Zillionaire by Chellie Campbell
