It's A Small World After All

A leftover of 60s idealism is an urge to make a difference in the world. That’s not enough. The captain of the Exxon Valdez made a difference in the world. We want to make the world a better place.

Reading the newspaper, or however you get your Big Picture, it’s easy to feel insignificant. On a global scale, most of us are. Perspective reminds us that we neither live nor act on a global scale. Our individual realms are much easier to affect.

Maintaining your personal social ecology is a tremendous responsibility. Don’t complain about the same situation more than once to the same person. Once is venting, twice is whining. Yes, I do it too, but I’ll try to stop.

Take your time when you talk to people. You matter to them, and that’s important. Smile when you mean it, not when you don’t.

This is about more than courtesy. It’s easy to poison an emotional environment. (See? It’s an Exxon Valdez callback for symmetry!) When someone is being serious, making a joke can backfire—even if it’s a really funny joke, or even when you just want to lighten the mood. We’ve all done that, and isn’t it awkward afterward?

We live in little tiny worlds within the big one. It’s up to us to make and keep our own peace. Trust me, it will make a difference.