Greetings Leaders!
As a sign of the times, my most viewed blog by far is… Overcoming Defeat – The Thing You Need To Know. I’ve blogged several times since then, trying to offer encouragement for those feeling discouraged or defeated. In today’s blog, I want to provide leaders with some tools and ideas that will enable you to encourage others.
If you have a job, give an anonymous gift to someone who is discouraged financially. Sometimes, people react in a weird way to charity. Especially men. You know… that pride thing. But that doesn’t mean you can’t help someone out. Here are some ideas:
- You can buy a gift card and drop it in the mail with a card. Anonymous of course.
- Perhaps you can place a bag of groceries or goodies on their doorstep and then run like heck for your car after you ring the doorbell (My son and I did that once and it was soooo much fun).
- Invite someone to the movies and treat them to popcorn and drinks. You can go to an afternoon matinee to save some money.
- If they belong to a church, go to the church and have someone on staff give them a care package that you made. My family has done this before and we were able to see the expression on their faces on a Sunday morning when they got their care package. It was priceless.
If you know someone who is looking for a job, there are several things you could do to encourage them. First of all, don’t just offer advice. People get tired of hearing “it’s going to be ok”. Why? Because it doesn’t really help them, and sometimes… things don’t work out. In fact, in my opinion, it’s not ok. It is not ok that someone who is willing to work, can’t find a job. While you don’t want to be gloomy around them, you also don’t want to dismiss the hardship that they’re going through by acting as if everything is ok. If you really want to help, offer to review their resume, or to pass on their resume to as many people as you know. Offer to listen and let them vent. Sometimes just letting them know that you care can make a difference in someone’s life.
If you know anyone who is just plain discouraged in their relationships, or with life in general, invite them to go to church with you. Polls are showing that in today’s economy, people are looking for answers. Having faith in a power beyond yourself sometimes helps to make sense of the world when things aren’t going your way.
If you have any special ways that you offer encouragement to others, please leave your comments below so others can take advantage of your ideas.
Be an encourager…
All the best!
All the time!
JT