WHO YOU ARE DETERMINES HOW YOU SEE OTHERS
A traveler nearing a great city asked an old man seated by the road, “What are the people like in this city?”
“What were they like where you came from?” the man asked.
“Horrible,” the traveler reported. “Mean, untrustworthy, detestable in all respects.”
“Ah,” said the old man, “you will find them the same in the city ahead.”
Scarcely had the first traveler gone on his way when another stopped to inquire about the people in the city before him. Again the old man asked about the people in the place the traveler has just left.
“They were fine people: honest, industrious, and generous to a fault,” declared the second traveler. “I was sorry to leave.”
The old man responded, “That’s exactly how you’ll find the people here.”
The way people see others is a reflection of themselves.
- If I am a trusting person, I will see others as trustworthy.
- If I am a critical person, I will see others as critical.
- If I am a caring person, I will see others as compassionate.
Your personality comes through when you talk about others and interact with them. Someone who doesn’t know you would be able to tell a lot about who you are based on simple observation.
John C. Maxwell, Winning with People: Discover the People Principles That Work for You Every Time (Nashville, TN: HarperCollins Leadership, 2007).
Check out the Society of Mentors . This is a meeting of mentors who desire to personally grow while continually impacting others with reaching the world with the gospel.
