Finding Balance
Wednesday, October 1st, 2008It is widely reported that Bill Clinton is obsessed with his legacy. Various reports from different news sources have reported for over a decade that he engages in global philanthropy in hopes that is how posterity will remember him. He has traveled the globe giving speeches about the environment, poverty, literacy, education, and the AIDS crisis. He has opened the most elaborate presidential library facility to date and his foundation gives away millions of dollars to very worthy charities. While I am neither praising nor criticizing his charitable work and donation power, it is clear this is man who wants to leave a positive mark in the pages of history.
There are others in our society (and throughout the world for that matter) who never so much as lift a finger to help another person. This is the type of person we all know from our work environment, our neighborhood, or the local hangout, as someone who you would never catch giving a penny to charity. We all know someone like this. They would not volunteer even a few minutes of their own time unless it directly benefited them or possibly an immediate family member. And you certainly would never catch this person in a church or watching a friend’s child in a little league game – simply too much personal effort wasted. This is the person that might go to work daily only because they have to. They do only what they want and when they want to. Their personal relationships are few because that would actually involve effort. Those who have some sort of relationship with these people are either very patient or giving themselves or too ignorant to know they are being taken for granted.
And if life is truly as short as most of us know it to be, neither of these types of people are the type most of us want to be. We might fall into the latter category (where we do little to nothing for others) without even realizing it. And we might fall into the other category where all we can think of is what others will think of us. In that category, we’re not interested in doing good for the sake of doing good, but rather for the sake of looking the part so that we can receive accolades and honors in front of a crowd.
If most of us were to make a conscious choice, we would choose to be the type of person somewhere in the middle – living a life of balance. In this scenario, we leave time for ourselves to read, relax and enjoy life. But we also spend time giving and volunteering, with no thought for personal gain. I personally have not yet achieved a comfortable balance. I tend to end up a little too far one direction or the other. But with time, I hope to have a balance – a balance where I can enjoy my free time and also feel worthy for having given to others. As always, I look forward to your thoughts.