i am super thankful to people who are real and honest with me.
two stories happened this week which made me think about how i should treat others and how to stay authentic.
1) story with a friend - thank you, but i don't want it
i shared a snack i really liked with a friend, and when he took it, looked at it,
"oh,"
"hmm,,"
"hey vera, thank you, but i probably won't eat it because i'm very picky on what i eat."
he handed it back to me instead of tossing it to a trashcan when i left.
later at night, i texted him:
hey bro, can’t say how much I love your honesty and being yourself
2) story with a former colleague - thank you! really appreciate your help and i learned a lot from you
i worked with an intern for over a year and had been openly teaching her data analytical skills, and sharing my personal learning during my early career. especially the mistakes i made because she reminded me of my younger self, who used to make tons of mistakes at work.
"thank you so much vera. i learned a lot from you and appreciate your time."
"hey i just want to check in with you and see how things have been since you moved to xxx (another office)"
i received
smile, lots of smiles.
appreciation, lots of appreciation.
then i left the company. her internship ended later on, and she wrote a professional thankful linkedin article. she expressed her gratefulness to twelve people she worked with, including the ones she just worked with for one or two months.
no single word about me. no private thank you message.
nothing.
i first felt upset because i always send thank you notes to people who helped me, big or little. i truly believe in a chinese saying and tradition "a drop of water in need, shall be returned with a spring in deed". this is how i was taught and how i treat others.
until then i realized, i can't expect others to treat me the same way that i treat them. it's understandable what the hell did she need to thank me since i was no longer with the company, and it was only my willingness to share and teach her things. it only reinforced my belief that i should always be thankful to people, no matter how small the help or favor is.
it's such a coincidence the two stories happened around the same time which made me feel super grateful to my friends who are real and honest with me. i know it's hard to stay authentic, especially under social pressures.
so be grateful and say thank you to people who are real and honest with you. it's such gold.
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