This article is part of the resource materials packet for Day 2 of the Good Success Thanksgiving Challenge. If you have not yet completed the assignment for Day 1, click here to read the resource materials and catch up.
Today’s challenge should be so easy: Tell a friend you’re grateful for them. However, I find that often small business owners, real estate investors, and entrepreneurs struggle to identify their true friends.
If you’re reading this and thinking, “No way, Tom! I know who my friends are!” then thank you, I’m sure I have my thank-you email in my inbox right now. No, I’m kidding.
But in all seriousness, if you can say with confidence, “I know who my friends are,” then that is a big deal. You are blessed. Now, go thank them!
For the rest of us, the lines between business partnerships and friendships may be a little more confusing. There are a lot of people of whom I am genuinely fond that I do not necessarily consider close friends. They are people I keep up with on social media or work with closely during the work week. However, if I were in trouble or facing turmoil, they are probably not the people I would turn to.
“Wow, ruthless, Tom,” you may be thinking. No, it’s not. It’s just an important distinction you need to make in order to keep your business thriving. Not everyone is a friend. That’s okay. They are still esteemed, valued colleagues and members of your community. But today, we’re focusing on your friends.
So, What is a Friend?
Well, I believe a friend is someone who:
- Sticks by you through thick and thin
- Is there if you need a hug or some moral support
- Is available when you reach out
- Knows you have flaws and is there for you anyway
- Is willing to tell you in a way that is productive when you are letting those flaws get the best of you
- Forgives your flaws, admires your strengths, and supports you no matter what
C.S. Lewis famously said, “Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, ‘What, you too? I thought I was the only one.’”
To me, that is the epitome of friendship, and sometimes people have no idea that you think of them in that way until you thank them for being your friend.
So, to complete your challenge today, I encourage every one of you to immediately thank a friend for being there for you. You can meet the letter (if not the spirit) of the challenge by thanking just one friend, but I would encourage you to take the next 15 minutes or so and send as many texts, emails, or other messages to the people you know are your friends.
You can be quite confident I will be sending out dozens of thanks-notes today, and I want to tell you, right now, that if you’re reading, consider me a friend when you need one. I am thankful for you and for Good Success’s place in your life.
Proverbs 18:24: A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
Are you playing catch-up? We’re thankful you’re here! Click HERE to go to Day 1 of the Good Success Thanksgiving Challenge or HERE to find the resources for the Challenge Day 3.
