Dog gone it anyway; it’s over already. The Christmas tree lies bare at our house as every present has been given away and opened by our family and friends. It’s a good thing the garbage truck comes tomorrow as both cans are full of wrapping paper, cardboard boxes, and leftovers, not to mention a few toys that have already bit the dust.
You likely gave presents to “your people” over the last several weeks.
But did you give them your most valuable gift, the gift that ultimately matters most?
Combining your holiday events with the New Years celebrations you attended, you most likely spent time with some of the most important, most influential and closest people in your life. Was it all you expected? Did you come away full of joy, gratitude, and love, connected with others, or does it feel like most of your efforts are leaving with the garbage truck later this week?
December is the one month of the year where we celebrate at work, in our communities, and with our families. We have an opportunity during the month to connect and invest in those people that we do life with. Unfortunately, we often get so tied up with the festivities, and presents under the tree, that we miss connecting with those around us. We are just not present with people; we allow ourselves to be distracted by the hustle and bustle of the season and miss out on the joy that the holidays can bring, the joy of truly being present with others.
Let’s change that. Let’s give our best to others. Let’s stop wasting our lives on things and put our precious commodity of time towards the people we most want to impact in our lives. Let’s make this New Year’s resolution to give our best gift to others, our attention, our passion, our joy, our love….. our presence.
A few thoughts to giving our presence to others:
- Start small, define your “who“: Select 2-4 people across your network (family, friends, work) that you want to give your presence to in a deeper and more meaningful way in 2024. Write them down and post them where you see them daily.
- Tell the people you have selected that your desire is to be more present with them and have them help you be accountable. Have them call you out when you slip back into scrolling on your phone or watching the game when you’re with them.
- Create a new and dedicated time for engaging these people outside of your normal communications with them. Lunch, coffee, pickle ball; add one new additional event this month for each, and ongoing. Make this time special and focused. Make this truly one-on-one time where you can give them your undivided attention.
- When engaging your “who”, put down your phone! No really, put your phone away. Make it inaccessible. Put it in another room, in your desk drawer, your backpack or purse. No watch updates either! Any time you are with them, make the time with them more important than anything else. By the way, even your boss’s text can wait.
Investing in being truly present with others will be the gift that keeps giving, bringing new life to our relationships, adding real spice to our conversations, and deepening the joy we find in each other.
May this be the one resolution for 2024 that we all keep: giving the gift of presence.
