So, as most of you know I have 3 very creative children who truly inspire me and make me laugh at least twice a day....everyday. Today, it was about scars. My daughter had skinned her elbows during a birthday party and they are still in that "tender to the touch" stage. My eldest son and she were talking about what could happen to those scrapes as they heal. My son said, "Well, you could have a scar or two..." My daughter followed with, "What's a scar?" My son then said, "Well, scars are things that girls don't like to have because they are ugly but, boys think they are cool 'cuz they mean they can remember the thing they did and show off that they didn't die..." " Oh, I hope I do not have a scar. If I do then I have to tell everyone that the slide attacked me."
Funny things scars are. The conversation this afternoon made me think about why scars are important to business folks. My daughter holds the belief that if people knew how you got them that they would think poorly of your choices and ultimately you. I tend to think more on the lines of my son in that, hey, we learned something and didn't die in the process. As business people, we are going to make some poor choices and some of them are going to leave marks for others to see. Right now, I have many colleagues that are seeking bankruptcy protection, are kicking themselves for taking that job that just laid them off, for putting all their proverbial eggs in one basket and relying on one source of business over others just to find that source drying up, and others who are just closing the doors and moving on due to the economic volatility and such. Does closing your doors or being forced to quit, or going broke, make you a failure? You, no. Your business, perhaps. The true failure would be if you did not pick yourself up and learn from the things that forced you into this situation in the first place.
I have scars. I have scars from broken bones, surgeries, being pregnant and even failed businesses. Some you can see, some not. The point is, if given the opportunity to make them all go away, I wouldn't (even the stretch marks I suppose) because they tell a story that I lived to tell and do not want to forget. What are the war wounds and scars that you have? What were the lessons you learned that made you a better person in the process?
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