Is it Worth It?

“Whenever you find yourself on the verge of losing your temper or falling into a bad mood, ask yourself, ‘Is this how I want to spend my day? Is it worth it to let this___________ (Fill-in-the-blank; person, situation etc.) take control of my day? Really?” – Margaret Meloni

You are probably not surprised that the above comes from me. Yes, this is one of those points that I just will not give up. Perhaps you have sayings that you like to use or expressions that your family, friends and co-workers expect to hear from you. I guess this is one of mine.

Too often I see people become really upset about something that in theory has no significant impact on their lives. Do you know what I mean? It’s when someone flies into a rage because someone takes their parking space or they are late to lunch and their favorite sandwich is gone. How is anything like that worth ruining your day? It is like an excuse just to be in a bad mood. Why would you want an excuse to be in a bad mood? Sounds like bad behavior to me.

How do you and I know that this happens? Because when it does the person in question is very vocal about it. They might actually start complaining or cursing. Perhaps they come stomping over to your workspace to go on a rant. How thoughtful of them to share. But that is OK, because when they start and you begin to feel your mood changing, you will stop and ask yourself, ‘Is it worth it? Am I going to let this petty situation impact the tone of the rest of my entire day? Do I really want to look back and realize that I wasted my precious time being anything less than happy?’

Is it worth it? Of course not, your time is much more valuable than that.