Of the six steps Zig Zigler says one must climb to reach “the top,” this step called “work” is the one most often skipped or is the one least thought about by people seeking success. Other people think it might be one of the first steps in the climb to success. However, if you think about it for any length of time, you soon realize that the previous steps are necessary to even begin taking this step.
If I don’t have a good self-image, I won’t look at “work” as a pleasant activity. I might even falsely think that if I were a “better” person, I wouldn’t have to work so hard. If I don’t have a good relationship with others, I may be constantly comparing and equating “work” with position in life. Without goals, I may not match “work” to effectiveness or accomplishment. And finally, if I have a negative attitude, I might only think of “work” as a punishment to be endured!
I can’t even count how many people my husband and I have interviewed during our careers who began their interview with, “I want a salary in the $.... range, hours between nine and five, no week-end work, and paid vacation time.” Do I need to even say that those interviews did not last very long at all? As the old adage says, “There’s no such thing as a free ride in life!” However, this day and time has found almost every TV commercial pushing “instant success” and one even spells it out: “instant gratification!”
If my long career of over fifty-five years has taught me anything, it is that “work” is a must in the equation of life. Success comes to those who do not avoid it, to those who embrace it and “whistle while I work” and never feel too successful or proud to roll up the sleeves and jump in to do whatever work the moment calls for or demands.
I never dreamed of building a private school. When the community came to my husband and asked if we would put in such a school, I wasn’t even sure we could. But I can tell you one thing: I still go to work every day and “work” in this school the same way I did when I was on the public school payroll. I see what has to be done…and I do it! I hardly think of it as “my school.” I do refer to it as “mine” when I am reprimanding a student who is defacing the building or furnishings because I want them to understand that I have worked hard to make it nice for them and to keep it nice for them takes a lot of “work” on my part…not to mention money!
Each morning as my husband and I pray for our students and staff, we thank God for giving us this garden in which to work. We often just sit on the porch swing and listen to the birds in the trees and watch the rabbits and geese in the soccer field. Such a peace and calm is empowering to us. With that “balm” we get busy and go to “work” doing whatever needs to be done besides our regular lesson plans, etc. We thank God that our children, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and our grandchildren, Mr. and Mrs. Saintcross have the same willingness to take that fifth step and “work.”
- Kay