How we affect other peoples lives

First of all please accept my apologies for a delay in fresh posts, but regular readers will know why. The last few days have been like a blur!! So many things have happened to me that it really is like a story book.When I first started writing this blog, I did wonder if I was going to run out of subject matter. I also wondered who would be interested in my life anyway?

However, after talking to several trusted friends and professionals, and having been given a long sentence of debilitating treatment, I felt that it would be a great way of communicating with people.Since writing about my experiences I now realise that I don't have an ordinary life!! What I have is very special. I am living a gift. The life I have, is because of a kind young man who took the trouble to donate his stem cells to me. Not once but twice!!

If someone has done that for me, then I must use that wisely. That is really what put me onto the path that I am on now.Since using my illness in a positive way, I am getting used to expecting the unexpected. Being on national television is one example of that. The programme has created a massive interest in my work, and I am being contacted by so many people who's life I have been/am part of.Until I was told, what effect my actions had on people I hadn't truly recognised the extent of my reach.

During the show, I was greeted by three ladies who had considered me to have positively changed aspects of their lives. When I was being told what I had done I was overcome. I just considered what I had done for them as standard.Since then so many other people have reminded me of what I did for them.

This made me think. Do we really consider our words and actions enough? Do we realise what effect we may have on somebodys life? I'm not sure we do. I normally try to take time with people to try and understand what makes them tick. I just love people. I learn every day, from meeting different people and encountering different situations.

I have three simple rules in my life, which have always served me well.

Firstly,'Treat people the way that you want to be treated' I give everyone respect until they show me they don't deserve it!

Secondly, 'Everyone feels better about themselves when they are comfortable and laughing', so that is what I try and achieve.

Finally, 'Do everything, the best that you can.

We live in a very competitive and fast moving world, and seem to do everything at 100mph. What are we trying to achieve?? We all need help at times, and I know from personal experience it is very difficult to ask sometimes.We communicate with each other by various mediums, and a lot of them are instant.

One example of thinking before we/do or say something is yesterday from The UK Government. They were so quick to talk about petrol and a possible dispute, they created the very thing they were trying to avoid, panic!!! It was all over the media before you could blink.I think that nowdays we are more concerned with the speed of communication than we are the quality. If we all took just a fraction longer to reflect on what we were about to communicate to someone, certain situations might be different.

On the same theme I would like to mention emails. How quick are we at sending and dealing with them. But do we really read and understand them. Do we think how a sent mail will be read and understood? It is a bit easier if you are sending to someone you know, but a lot of mails go to people we don't know. Are some things better spoken than written? I think in a lot of instances they are, but computers are convenient and faceless, and we can hide behind them and we feel protected.

I'm sure we can all make a positive effect to each others lives if maybe we thought a little more about how the other person might feel, about something you are going to communicate.Maybe take a little more time in certain instances?? What do you think????