Tonight, we had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner. Grapes, too. And there was a spinach salad with almonds and carrots to start things out. It was a good meal. My sons made it. My wife set them to task, walked out the door, and joined me outside as I toiled in the yard.
My boys went about their work.
When it was ready, they let us know. We all sat down as a family, and we ate our sandwiches. My oldest asked multiple times if the sandwich was satisfactory. He had this sheepish grin on his face. My little guy made the salads. He was mildly interested in whether or not we liked our salad, but he was more interested in his PB&J.
Before our meal, we thanked our boys for the wonderful dinner they made. After, we thanked them again. It was obvious my boys felt good about the meal they created.
Therein lies the life lesson: do your work…your unique work in your unique way, and be proud of it.
When I was in the yard, I spent half my time cleaning up the mess left behind by the workers who replaces my roof and siding. They finished about two weeks ago. We’re still finding nails, pins, and staples everywhere. Scrap siding, too. And shingles. They tore up my flower beds, destroyed a dwarf Korean lilac, and damaged my vegetable garden. It’s obvious to me that the men who came to work their butts off at my house cared little for the actual work they were doing. No art in their work. It was unconscious, mechanical work. They got it done quickly, but some times speed isn’t everything. I don’t think they put much pride into their task.
It shows. Two weeks later, it shows.
I think intrinsic motivation is important. I think being motivated to do the best work possible is important, too. And I think having pride in the output of your work is really important. I think my boys get that, at least as well as they can at their respective ages. I will do my part to ensure they sustain that. Perhaps some day, someone will be telling a story about the fantastic work my boys did and how their joy and obvious pride in what they do make them worth every penny. And perhaps they’ll be talking about their wonderful peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Illuminate Possibilities 