Happy May! Do you remember May Baskets? As kids, my brothers and I filled little dixie cups with candy, decorated them, then ran around the neighborhood putting them on neighbor’s steps, rang their doorbells, and ran away. It was one of the fondest memories I have as a child. This was always done May 1st to celebrate spring and friendship. I had lunch this month with some of my friends, and one of them brought us all May baskets. We were all thrilled and expressed our thanks. How kind it was for our friend to think of us and bring us all May baskets, and she put a lot of work into them. Thank you Heidi!
As I think about May baskets, I ask myself and you – who is in your basket? We surround ourselves with so many people, but are they the right people? The individuals we choose to associate with can either propel us forward or hinder our progress. It’s essential to understand the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people who inspire, challenge, and support your growth. You need to surround yourself with people who will help you achieve your goals, support your beliefs, and are the kind of people who you want to be. Picking who you want in your basket for your journey can be really hard, and it might mean you have to make some hard decisions.
I had a program in San Antonio, Texas, this month, and another speaker who was speaking at the event reached out to me asking if we could meet and visit about the speaking business. It was a fantastic event with so many wonderful people, and after I spoke, I sent him a message and asked if he wanted to meet in the lobby. We decided to visit over lunch, and our conversation turned out to be enlightening and very unexpected. He told me he looked at my website before meeting me and just assumed that I would be a snob with a bit of an ego. He almost bailed, because he thought I would be hard to talk to, but then he said I was the complete opposite. I am not telling you this to toot my own horn, but rather to explain that we shouldn’t jump to conclusions or pre-judge people until we have a chance to connect with them and see what’s in their basket. We had so much in common, from our spouses of many years leaving us, to abusive childhoods, to starting our own business. It was a great conversation.
Sometimes, we feel we’re the only ones going through hardships and challenges, but we aren’t! One comment he made really stuck with me. He said, “You are a real person.” I thought about that comment for a long time, and it made me realize that people can look at a photo or at your website and make assumptions about what kind of person you are. But before you decide who you want to give a May basket to and who you don’t, you really need to get to know them. We also must make the choice as to what we put in that basket and what we need to remove. I told this gentlemen that I found love again, built my own business, bought a car on my own for the first time in my life, bought my own home, and even learned how to change the filter in my furnace. Hardships in my life have made me stronger and more independent. He told me by looking at my pictures on my website, I look like I have the perfect life, but don’t let social media fool you.
As you decide who and what you put in your basket, remember who you are and how you got to where you are. Keep filling your basket – Happy May.
