Count Your "Something Goods"

Nothing comes from nothing

Nothing ever could

So somewhere in my youth or childhood

I must’ve done something good.

~Oscar Hammerstein II~

You’ve done something good.

If you tracked all the contributions and all the ways that you’ve made a difference, you would be overwhelmed.

If all the people you have helped in some way could come forward and tell you today what a difference you made, you would be stunned.

We go about our lives making people smile, shaping people’s lives, doing what we do and we rarely take inventory of the goodness we bring.

The other night the song "Something Good" from The Sound of Music popped into my mind. You may know it as a love song, but somehow I heard it differently. And I was hearing this small section of the song on replay - the song was telling me that it's the little things we do that make a difference.

The lyrics imply you can't help but do something good.

At that moment, I wasn’t trying to take inventory or give myself credit – the song just made me feel good and it reminded me that no matter what outcomes I achieve or do not achieve, if I’ve done my best, I must’ve done something good.

I was thinking about you too - I know that my own heart sometimes gives me a window to the world.

We tend to beat ourselves up. I see this in my work as a communication doctor and organizational and personal development expert. I hear the bad scripts that we repeat at work, at home and in other settings. Beating ourselves up in little ways is an unfortunate common occurrence. The negative voices in our heads whisper that we aren't enough - that we should've done better, we should've done more or we should've done something differently. (By the way, this is dialogue that is ready to be reprogrammed. Identify it - call it out - and turn up the volume on the positive voices in your head. Stay tuned for details - my new book coming out later this year will teach you how.)

But here's a truth: when other people look at us – they see the something good within us.

Sometimes the good we do isn’t measurable. Or more accurately, we don’t take time to measure it.

Here are some good things you can count today:

• Number of smiles you’ve been responsible for today

• Number of chuckles you’ve generated

• Number of hugs you have given

• Number of new ideas you’ve put in motion

• Number of seeds you’ve planted

• Number of relationships you’ve nurtured

• Number of times you’ve offered healing or helping words

We tend to disregard our positive contributions. This month is a wonderful time to count your blessings - and remember the blessings you bring.

Sing it in your mind….

Nothing comes from nothing

Nothing ever could

So somewhere in my youth or childhood

I must’ve done something good.

And know – with great certainty – you certainly have done something good.

Allow yourself to take inventory as you go about your day – you can think about it while you cook or drive or walk between appointments – it won’t take very long.

Allow yourself to feel your something good’s in your heart for just a moment. And if it makes you feel good, tell someone else the something good that you see in him or her.

The word needs positivity and goodness right now. And you are providing the something good we need.

Join our community. And stay tuned for details on my new book to be released later this – it’s a guide for negotiating the off-road experience of life – it’s Divinely-inspired opportunity and we’re going to have fun exploring it together. ~Kathy~

© Kathy Sturgis, Ph.D. Kathy is founder of Refreshment Zone and is a communication doctor who specializes in organizational and personal development. Contact kathy@refreshmentzone.com for more information on motivational programs.