“Just” Ain’t It
Let’s kick this off with a taste of honesty. The post you are about to read is not the one I had prepared to release this evening. About midway through the week, I had a change of heart. A promise that I made myself when dreaming up this jump was when I saw something that struck me as a necessary message, I would send it. So the aforementioned post will wait in the drafts for another week. Maybe.
I found what I felt was a stronger, more important message that needed addressed.
As a new TikToker (is that I am called now?), I have enjoyed the content driven to my algorithm. There are dogs, educators, sports, comedians, and more dogs. Perfect scrolling content if you ask me. I also follow the lovely Miss Pam, one of the people who changed my life for the better while we worked together at my most recent elementary school. She always posts lively content that makes me smile, but on Thursday, she posted a heartfelt “thank you” directed my way. She talked about the podcast sparking her why again as she recorded signs that she posted throughout the cafeteria at school. Signs that said “You matter” and “Share your story” were hung in hopes to motivate and empower positive mindsets of our little Sharks. As the video was ending, she spoke a phrase that she knows strikes a cord with me. And I know she did it in jest, but it made me think about others who use it as part of their actual self-identity.
“I am just a custodian,” she said with a knowing smirk and air quotations. Again, this is more an inside joke to us. Although, I remember conversations during which she did feel that way.
And haven’t we all, at some point, felt as though we were simply the content of our title and no more? I sure have. I am just the principal. People see a decision-maker, not a person. They see a sounding board, not the human who wears the emotions being thrown his way. Those were the stories I told myself.
We all have “top of the world” moments in our roles and lives that can change this mindset. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to stay on top of the mountain for too long. Typically, we stumble back to that negative mindset of simply being “just a custodian, teacher, aide, secretary, stay-at-home parent, nurse, person walking down the street” and the list goes on and on and on.
Our own voice is the one we hear most. We sit in our thoughts more often than the thoughts of others. And when we begin to believe the story we tell ourselves that we are “just” something, we are insinuating that we are “less than” those around us. It becomes a dangerous narrative when we minimize the potential impact we can have based on a silly job or life title. Value does not simply decrease based on a label.
Before others can believe in your impact potential, you must believe in yourself. Your title, whether at home or work, does not define your impact. You…the person, the talent, the mindset, the heart, the energy…define your impact. The sooner you drop the word “just” from your vernacular, the sooner you will feel your influence grow. Isn’t it insane how one word can control so much? Do not give a four letter word the power to diminish who you are and what you are capable of doing.
As you get to know me and read more posts, you will see that most of my examples come from the teaching world. It is where I spent over half of my life thus far. We would not have enough time for us to count the amount people in schools who have used the phrase: “I am just a teacher.” You want to make a good leader’s skin crawl? Say something like that to them in person. They will actually shiver.
For reference, I was in education for nearly 16 years as either a teacher or administrator. I am no mathematician, but that would mean I would have had direct impact on about 4,500 students and staff. This does not begin to count the parents who came along for the ride. Imagine putting “just” in front of that number. My mind then wanders to my many colleagues who have done this for even longer. Their number doubles. There is no minimizing how far that goes.
What I am challenging you to do this week is to focus on the opportunity for impact in your life. Take a long look in the mirror and be impressed with what you see. Thank that person for the amazing imprint they leave on whoever they meet. Consider the amount of people you come across in the role in which they are fortunate enough to experience you. Understand that your impact reaches great lengths. It goes beyond the person you interact with at any given time. They take the experience with them. It is carried to a place you might never see. Our fingerprints stay on the hearts of those we touch forever. There is no “just” about that. There is simply an opportunity for more.
Do me a favor. Only use that word when adjusting your minset. Turn “I am just a nurse” into “I am a nurse and I have the opportunity to impact through healing.” Turn “I am just a part-time musician” into “I am a musician who makes an impact through emotion and lyrics.” And please, to my school friends, turn “I am just a (fill in the black)” into “I am a (fill in the blank) at a school who makes impact by being a light for countless students every day. Go ahead. Practice. I dare you.
Whatever role you play, believe that you are amazing, a difference-maker. There is no room for “just” in that sentence.
Go crush the week!
Much Love,
Mike
