Have you captured someone’s heart lately?
Time flies when you are having fun. . . or when you are busily working. I didn’t realize that almost a month has passed since my last official blog post. So, what has been circling in your heart lately?
I can tell you that mine has been about relationship building in all aspects of my life.
I recently went to a training course called Capturing Kids' Hearts. If you are an educator, this might sound familiar. It is an internationally recognized program about how to build relationships in a classroom. It seemed pretty straight forward.
But what I found is one hour into the workshop, this was going to be an intense, reflective 16 hours of my time to see if I have been truly building relationships among all of the loved ones I encounter.
I am not going to explain the details of the entire training, but what I am going to say is one of my big takeaways was how individuals greet each other. . . yes, it sounds quite simple. You give a salutation, maybe show a facial expression, and begin a conversation.
But what I found about myself, especially on a day when I am rushing home from work, taking children to appointments, alerts on my phone, and then I walk through the front door of our house, I say “Hi” but I often do not even pause to look someone in the eyes. I might walk past my girls, my husband, and start on the list of all the TO-Do’s that have to be done to clean up the house.
You want to know a secret? Above anything else, if you do not pause to make eye contact, really take the time to greet another person, a relationship can never grow. It is stunted- creating lack of security among two individuals.
Ouch, that one hurt. As a mom, a wife, a friend, a working professional, I often feel like I don’t have the time to stop and chat, wanting to multitask as I go.
But, having intentionality and really just having a conversation with someone first, will make any task easier.
So, I tried it out. I came home that day, even though the house was far from clean, walked past the laundry and dirty dishes, and gave a hug to the girls, sitting down to chat. They were ready for me to start the orders of what chores to get done. But instead I just listened to their day and shared about my day. I actually had a conversation with Scott, like I didn’t realize how blue his eyes are. I wonder how often in our busy lives do we not have these moments to pause and greet someone.
You want to know another secret? When we did have to clean up the house, make dinner, do dishes, etc, it just didn’t seem as hard.
Relationship building. . . I truly believe that if we all started to focus on this more, culture shifts would happen in homes, in schools, in the workplace, politics, and so much more. . Conflicts could be handled in a more respectful manner, focusing on solutions rather than opposing views.
I thank our 2 day workshop leader for showing me how a simple shift in mindset can make impactful changes in all relationships in my life. Remember, one is never too old to learn new things, make changes
So, leading with your heart. It takes vulnerability, it takes courage, it might even feel a bit uncomfortable at the beginning.
Greet your neighbor, greet your children, hug your partner, and make eye contact with the ones around you. Believe me, it will make a difference in all aspects of your life.
Remember. . .
No beauty shines brighter than that of a good heart.
-Shanina Shaik