At the end of every Gretchen Rubin Happier podcast, Gretchen and her sister Elizabeth give out one gold star and one demerit based on their experiences, perceptions, or whatever, from the previous week. I decided to do a riff on that today and, because I’m a fan of focusing on the positive, I’m giving out 3 gold stars this week.
- Community volunteers. I’m talking about the people who serve on boards and committees . . . the people who step up and run for public office . . . the people who sponsor events to spread kindness and build relationships. These are the people who make a difference every day and our communities are better places to be because of them.
- TikTok Creators. Don’t roll your eyes, hear me out! I’m not talking about drama and bullshit (and goddess knows there’s plenty of that over there) I’m talking about creators who use their platform to educate us, to debunk misinformation, to explain how the world looks and works to and for them. I’m particularly grateful to black, indigenous, and people of color (especially women) for the work they do to educate me. It’s a great opportunity to sit back and just listen. I learn something every single time.
- Health Care workers. You know that I have had lots of appointments in health care facilities since last fall. I’ve seen my own doctor as well as two doctors in other practices. I’ve had blood drawn and x-rays taken and CT scans done. And, with the exception of one cranky receptionist (one time) and one diet-pushing nutritionist, these people have been wonderful to me. I have experienced kindness and patience and I have felt that I’ve-got-you feeling numerous times and I’m grateful to all of them for being there to help me and so many others.
I hope you have people in your world that deserve a gold star today. Maybe you’ll be inspired to tell me about them in the comments or give them a gold star on your own blog one of these days.
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What a nice, positive post Carole. A great shout-out (and gold stars) for all those people!
My medical people have been largely gold star too. There was one in my past that I’m just now discovering should be dragging a mill stone sized demerit around, but I fired her a couple of years ago and replaced her with a total gold star PCP. Thanks for reminding me I should tell them more how I appreciate them.
BRAVO! for giving out Gold Stars! 🙂
Everyone likes giving (and getting) gold stars! I once had a mammogram tech that was so good and honest that I had to write her a thank you note and let her supervisor know how good she was. It was one when they had already found something so I was quite nervous, but she managed to be reassuring without making false promises. She deserves a big gold star!
Fairly recently (maybe 10ish years ago?) MGH opened a branch in a North Shore town not far from us. The physicians and surgeons come out in a rotating basis from Boston while the ancillary staff are permanent. It is easy to get to, spacious and clean, has plenty of free parking, appointments are easy to get, and there is no waiting once you get there—all things that MGH in Boston is not. AND the staff are all friendly, helpful, and efficient. A giant gold star for MGH Danvers.
I am nodding to Bonny’s comment… I have written more notes of thanks to Mammogram Technicians. The good are so very appreciated… and I hope that dropping them a note sharing that appreciation brightens their day.
Great post! 🙂
What a great post, Carole, staying on the positive side of things. As a healthcare worker all my life, I can tell you that you meet a lot of great people doing that job, but you also meet a lot of not-great people, so hearing praise from anyone is like winning the sweepstakes. I’m sure that is true of every job that interfaces with the public, so let’s all try to remember to be kind to those folks who deal with the public every day!
I’m inspired by your gold stars, Carole! I think we should make a habit of telling people we appreciate them more often. I know I did it a lot in the early days of the pandemic, leaving notes for our mail carrier and sanitation workers and of course applauding health care workers. But think of how much we could make someone’s day by giving them a gold star or simply a word of thanks?
This is great Carole! Doug gets a gold star for being on the finance committee! So many meetings pre town meeting. And I’m going to send me CT scan tech a thank-you. She was amazing!
I love the three gold star post. I often send notes of appreciation, I know many people take the time to send notes of complaint and less make the effort to acknowledge positive experiences. I especially like to let public school teachers that their work is important and noticed!
Those are three VERY-deserving Gold Stars, Carole – and I love the opportunity to send my gratitude out into the world this afternoon. Thank you!