WHERE WE SIT IN LIFE HAS AN IMPACT My father sat at the head of the table. My mother sat to his left so she could put food on his plate. I had my assigned seat next to my youngest brother. I did not question where I sat. My seat had been assigned to me as long as I could remember. Growing up, everyone in the household had a place, a seat, and my job was to remember it. When I moved to Asia, I sometimes accompanied my then husband to business functions. Most of the time, I felt awkward and out of place. I grew up on farm land. The many forks, plates, and glasses puzzled me. I wondered where to sit, how to stand, what to say. I was a fish out of water. One day, I was invited to attend a dinner with the President of HSBC England. As a polite gesture, this Chinese man asked me to pick the first seat at the round dinner table. I froze. What if I picked the wrong seat? What would he think? What would everyone at the table think? I swallowed and sat at what I perceived to be the worst seat: my back was against the wall and going to the washroom would require me to disrupt many people. Without a word, he sat next to me and everyone else took their place. I breathed a sigh of relief. I thought all was well until… my then husband told me later that night I had made a huge mistake. I had picked the best seat! I was floored. Didn’t I remember the ‘back to the mountains, face to the sea’ Chinese proverb? According to Chinese tradition, the Emperor sits at the table with his back against the wall so he can see his enemy coming. And, before his enemy can kill him, he would have to get through many other people standing in the way. Holy Shit! In the past, by wanting to keep peace, please others, and not be a bother, I have most often taken the seat I thought other people wanted me to take at the table of life. I did not ask for seat by the window or in the sun. I often let other people decide what was right or wrong for me. I had behaved like a little girl sitting at her parents table. Where we sit in life has an impact. I now fight for where I believe I deserve to be sitting. My seat changes based on how I am feeling in that moment. It is not dependent on who is sitting at the table with me either. Do you like where you are sitting in your life right now? @DovBaron #authentic #speaker #academy for #leadership asaleadership
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 23:43:08 +0000
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