The wake

When William learned that he was being fired for laziness and inefficiency, he went to see the head of Human Resources. “Since I’ve been with the firm for so long,” he said, “I think I deserve at least a letter of recommendation.” The Human Resources director agreed and said he’d have the letter ready the next day. The following morning, William found the letter on his desk. It read:

“William worked for our company for eleven years. When he left us, we were very satisfied.”

What happened to William? Why did he lose the fire?

Maybe he needs to be in a wake.

Puzzled? Let me enlighten you with this beautiful piece by an unknown writer:

All the employees in a certain office saw a big sign on their office door one day. The sign said, “Yesterday, the person who has been hindering your growth in this company passed away. We invite you to join the wake in the room that has been prepared in the gym.”  

At first, all the employees got sad about the death of one of their colleagues. But after a while, they became curious to know who the man was who had been hindering their growth and that of the company itself. The gym gathered so much excitement that security agents were ordered to control the crowd in the room.

As they the people neared the coffin, the more their excitement escalated. Every one was wondering, “Who is this guy who was hindering my progress? Well, at least he died!” One by one, the excited employees got closer to the coffin, but when they looked inside, they suddenly became speechless.

They stood beside the coffin in silence, shocked, as if something has touched the deepest part of their soul. They were shocked because inside the coffin was a mirror, and they saw themselves when they looked. And next to the mirror was a sign that said, “There is only one person who is capable of setting limits to your growth: IT IS YOU!” 

Your life does not change when your boss, or your friends, or your parents, or your spouse, or your company, or your church, or your location, or your money, or your status changes…  

Your life changes when YOU change, when you go beyond your limiting beliefs.

Examine yourself. What limiting beliefs have you been holding on to.

Don’t be afraid of difficulties, impossibilities and losses. Be a winner. Build yourself and be the one to build your reality. It’s the way you face Life that makes the difference.

Many people are slightly motivated only by the tiny pay slips they receive every 15th and the 30th of the month. Meanwhile, the days in between are filled with struggles to get by. The drive to improve and achieve better things has died. We need the wake to shock us back to reality.

Life is never what happens. It’s how you deal with what happens. And work is a blessing and a gift from God. If you don’t believe me, ask those who are jobless.

Be productive, and unleash the potential in you that has been lying dormant for so many years. Never forget – the largest room in the world is the room for self-improvement.

(Get daily inspirational quotes and thoughts from Francis! Send “Inspire” to 288 for Smart or Sun subscribers and 2889 for Globe. Visit facebook.com/franciskong2 for more details.)