The Law of the Garbage Truck

The Law of the Garbage Truck


How often do you let other people's nonsense change
your mood? Do you let a
bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an
insensitive employee ruin your
day? Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant
you're probably set back
on your heels. However, the mark of a successful
person is how quickly
she/he can get back her/his focus on what's
important.

Five years ago I learned this lesson. I learned it
in the back of a taxi cab
in Indianapolis. Here's what happened:

I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for the
Indianapolis Airport. We were
driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a
black car jumped out of a
parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver
slammed on his brakes,
skidded, and missed the other car's back end by just
inches!

The driver of the other car, the guy who almost
caused a big accident,
whipped his head around and he started yelling bad
words at us. My taxi
driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean,
he was friendly.

So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy
almost ruined your car and
sent us to the hospital!" And this is when my taxi
driver told me what I now
call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck."

Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around
full of garbage, full
of frustration, full of anger, and full of
disappointment. As their garbage
piles up, they need a place to dump it.

And if you let them, they'll dump it on you. When
someone wants to dump on
you, don't take it personally. You just smile, wave,
wish them
well, and move on. You'll be happy you did.

So this was it: "The Law of the Garbage Truck." I
started thinking, how
often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And
how often do I take
their garbage and spread it to other people: at
work, at home, on the
streets? It was that day I said, "I'm not going to
do it anymore."

I began to see garbage trucks. Like in the movie
"The Sixth Sense," the
little boy said, "I see Dead People." Well, now "I
see Garbage Trucks." I
see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to
drop it off. And like my
taxi driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I
just smile, wave, wish them
well, and I move on.


Good leaders know they have to be ready for their
next meeting. Good parents
know that they have to welcome their children home
from school with hugs and
kisses (I wish I was this parent). Leaders and
parents know that they have
to be fully present, and at their best for the
people they care about.


The bottom line is that successful people do not let
Garbage Trucks take
over their day. What about you? What would happen in
your life, starting
today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?


You'll be happier. Life's too short to wake up in
the morning with regrets,
so

*Love the people who treat you right Pray for the
ones who don't.*