Never have I understood why people get all gushy over the mere mention of a baby or a dog.
PEOPLE!, babies are self centered little bald aliens that spit up on you, scream bloody murder and expect you to drop everything NOW to attend to them, in your own house, your castle! (And yes, I once was one though my mother tells me I was beautiful despite being premature and blue and well, just a lot of extra work.)
Dogs are not much different just furrier and faster but, they at least seem to show their appreciation with an occasional wag of the tail.
Babies and Dogs are not what I count among my favorite things. And the following video is a fine illustration…
Now here’s the “BUT” part of my story….they, both babies and dogs, just love me! I mean, if there’s a screaming, totally out of control little bald alien, just hand the thing over to me and guess what…….peace returns to planet Earth.
No, I didn’t do anything awful to the little invading beast. I do though have three fairly well adjusted kids (well at lease two of them are, jury is still out on the third, who can get himself lost at the drop of a hat) but I digress. Hand me a screaming baby and Wah La!, like magic, peace and order returns to the world.
About dogs and me…..put a roomful of people together and turn a dog loose (big, little, male, female, friendly or not) and the dog after one or two laps around the room will come over to me and put its head on my knee (big dog) or jump up into my lap (small dog). Truly amazing!!! Where do these life forms get off liking me?
In both cases, baby and /or dog, when we do happen to encounter one another, I will explain to them very calmly and slowly, that I’m not really all that crazy about us being put together. They both seem to listen very carefully while making eye contact and making those soft little guttural sounds, then they will smile and wag their tail. Not nessarily in that order or both responses by all of the parties. We just agree to accept the reality of being truly present with each other at that moment in time.
OK, what’s the point of my little confession? What have I learned from this apparent freak of nature that is worth sharing with you? Just this. If you are only you and try not to be everything to everyone, most all people and animals will respect that.
They will find comfort in knowing that you know who you are, which in turn puts them at ease.
Babies and dogs can pick up almost instantly on your true self, your true intent. They can cut through all the confusion and smoke screens to enjoy your authenticity. The simple wonderment of you being you.
To put this in a business context, be true to your passion, your target market, your ideal client and who you are. Who knows what stray dog will show up in your lap? Or what baby will be laid upon your doorstep?
