Recently while driving to an appointment, I sat at a red light admiring the creative architectural design of a local bank’s brand new office building. While doing so, a well-lighted lobby area on the first floor caught my eye. On the wall of the lobby which faced the street were large letters that were easily readable from the road. The large lettering said, IMPACT LIVES. As I continued to look, I realized there was additional small lettering on either side of those two large words. A closer look revealed the full statement to read, How will you IMPACT LIVES today?
What an intriguing question for a commercial bank to ask its employees to contemplate on a daily basis as they enter and exit the building. They could have asked their employees, how will you impact the bottom line today. Instead they asked them how will you impact lives today. It appears the management team of that bank understands a key life principle. If their employees work hard at having a positive impact on the people with whom they have dealings, the bottom line will take care of itself.
How will you IMPACT LIVES today? For the individual who could care less what effect or influence they have on others, or how others think and feel about them, this is an insignificant question. But for those whose desire is to create a positive effect in, and have a positive influence on the lives of others, it is a great question to ponder. It is a great question because it is a great evaluation tool that promotes intentionality in us regarding our desire to have a given impact on others. It does not leave to chance the possibility of achieving the impact we want to make. Wrestling regularly with this question allows us to intentionally and regularly evaluate the impact we want to have on others versus the impact we are having. It allows us to evaluate what is leading to that particular impact, and what needs to change to achieve desired outcomes if they are not being accomplished.
If it is our desire to do all we can to have a positive impact on other people, it will be helpful to remember several important contributors to the impact opportunity we ultimately foster:
- Our attitudes – i.e. cooperative versus resistant
- Our disposition – i.e. “negative Nellie” versus “positive Paula.”
- Our demeanor – i.e. warm and friendly versus cold and calculating
- Our spirit – i.e. fearful versus trusting
- Our motive – i.e. selfish versus blessing to others
- Our purpose – i.e. enable or disable
- Our biases and prejudices – i.e. discounting versus valuing
- Our actions – i.e. listening versus ignoring
- Our words – i.e. caring versus condemning
- Our stability – wisdom and discernment versus foolishness
How will you and I IMPACT LIVES today? Will we make them glad in our coming or in our going? Will we encourage them or discourage them? Will we enslave them with law or free them with grace and mercy? Will we make them fearful by bulldozing them, manipulated by schmoozing them, or empowered by recognizing without prejudice and bias their dignity and worth as an individual?
Ultimately, the assessment of the impact we make on others hinges on the other person and how they perceive and receive us. That being said and acknowledged, we are still accountable for what we give them to work with. We need to heed what the Bible says in Proverbs 12:26 (ESV), “One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor [positive impact], but the way of the wicked leads them astray [negative impact].”
Let’s so live that people will conclude that the impact it has on them is that they will be glad they have been in our presence.
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