Yesterday I consumed much energy and time, traveling to Toronto to become a voluntary board member for a relevant Ontario association. The journey required three flights (the most direct route, in aviation, is rarely the least expensive) and along the way, I lost my drivers license, meaning I’ll have a good extra 30 minutes or so in the motor vehicle office today to achieve a replacement. Along the way, a promising new employee of our organization resigned because the work didn’t match his personality, a business associate expressed concern because of a bit of journalism which offended someone’s values, and I tried to help someone on a voluntary forum who turned out to be, well, a spammer who cries everywhere, all the time, for help.
Arriving home at midnight, fatigued, I had some trouble sleeping. Stressed, tired, and frustrated because I achieved so little yet spent so much energy . . .
I’m sure you’ve had days like that in the past. Of course, the day wasn’t a real waste. I’ll be able to make worthy contributions to the voluntary association in the months and years ahead, and these relationships will take us closer to our core market objectives. The employee who resigned left a legacy of some useful work which will produce revenue without of course the need for more payroll expenses for him. We can certainly heed the client’s concerns and be sure not to step into places where we shouldn’t. The voluntary help forum work is just that — I can do it when I want and there are rewards in trying to help, even when the help turns out to be misplaced.
And the flights — well, I’m reminded of the virtues of competition in the free market; better service and lower costs occur when two well-funded players (airlines) duke it out within a marketplace. Ditto for any other type of business.
Today will be better.
Mark, thank you very much for attending the meeting last night. I was impressed that you traveled on your own time, and I’m sure the other Board members were as well. It is a vote of confidence in what we are doing, and your efforts are much appreciated. Next time, though, we can teleconference!