Friday, March 19, 2010

"I Gotta Take This"

There is a mistake that I have made too many times and not even realized I have done it. I am sure I have made people feel uneasy and unimportant & it is not something I plan to do in the future.

"I gotta take this" or "1 sec while I text this guy back" while in the middle of a meeting or a conversation tells the person I am with that someone or something is more important than they are. I've always known this but there are certain situations where either I have done this or it has been done to me recently that have flared my passion in this arena.

I know it is easy to explain away. "People don't mind," "It's my wife," "It's work." All things that can wait, important things that can wait. Ultimately we have put ourselves on pedestals by being "available" to everyone but the person we are with.

A friend once told me, "When you are here, be here," and I loved this advice - then later the same friend answered 2 phone calls in a 10 minute conversation with me. I have done this too many times, sometimes to get out of a talk I didn't want to be in or sometimes because I need to feel important in front of . . . well anyone.

Am I really that important that I can't call someone back, or text them in a few minutes? Are you that important?

That was rhetorical, I'm not.

Get down pride & glory - you don't live here anymore.

2 comments:

  1. i see your point, but i dont neccessarily agree. your wife should be more important than anyone you are talking to. you have a home together, and a family together. she could be calling for anything, and i dont think that her calls should ignored. thats just my opinion though.

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  2. I'm not sure that not answering a call from her makes her level of importance drop. She is the most important on this earth, but she is made to feel that in every aspect, meaning that I can have a meaningful conversation and call her back without making her feel unimportant.

    I understand the thought, but like you said, I simply disagree.

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