Last week I was at the airport waiting to board…and in the midst of waiting finishing a work call, an individual was sitting next to me.

As I wrapped up the call, slide a napkin across the counter. I finished the call, put down my phone, looked at the stranger, look at the napkin and turned over the napkin. I saw the words…“YOU ARE A GREAT LEADER.”

It has been a hard few months.

I have been feeling defeated. I was at the point of second guessing a lot of things…and this particular call I had just finished wasn’t easy…yet it concluded with a positive outcome.

I often tell people I often cannot tell if what I am doing or the way I approach problem solving, life and the energy I bring to my day makes a difference, is seen, or leaves behind an impression to think differently and celebrate the act of today. As a fact finder, an overthinker, and a perfectionist…it drives me to be a consumate seeker of feedback because I know I can always become better and I know I fail often as it allows new paths of success to be achieved…

Suffice it to say that stranger in the airport didn’t know what that small gesture meant…yet it was both a ray of kindness I needed and an affirmation I need to remind myself who I am and what I am capable of.

A reminder to everyone…if someone makes a difference…say something…great leaders and great humans exist and become better through the acts of feedback, being mentored by other great leaders and advocating for each other.

THANK YOU STRANGER.

“In a nutshell, a fixed mindset is stationary thinking. There are ceilings. Limits. What’s possible and not possible. Failure is a thing. It’s real and exists. People with a fixed mindset spin, internalize, and take things very personally. Growth mindset people believe anything is possible. The world is limitless. They understand the power of and believe in the words “not yet” over “never.” They judge less, especially themselves. And pull from curiosity over fear when faced with challenges. Objectivity is a skill set. Failure is just information.”