Showing Up

It's only fair to tell you that I'm a dropout. At the beginning of my second year in the local religious school, I was escorted out of the building and asked not to return. My crime: Bringing pretzels into the classroom that were not marked "kosher."

Whatever. I grabbed my notebook and unfinished homework and never looked back.

That's probably the last time I said "whatever" and meant it. These days I'm rabid about showing up.

Good example: I just received a call from a potential client. He'd like to discuss working together. Could we meet this afternoon?

Of course we can. But only because I'm dressed for ready.

I bet you can think of at least three occasions when you passed up an opportunity to have lunch, take a meeting, initate a conversation, introduce yourself because you showed up for the day...but barely. You know what I'm talking about -- sloppy pants, ill-fitting jacket, unwashed hair, shoes that need a good polishing -- and funnily enough you probably knew as you were getting dressed that you were shaping the trajectory of your day.

Here's another way to look at it: Can you afford to let an opportunity go unmarked? Do you look at every new relationship as an opportunity to tell your story, widen your network and move in new circles? Are you moving through your life with purpose?

I know it would save time to skip the morning ritual of laying out the clothes, the accessories, even the silly barrette matchup. And there are times when I deride myself for caring so much about, well, practically everything.

On the other hand, I'd rather care about a lot of things than care about nothing.