Shortcuts shortchange the long run.

It has been more than three decades since I have been able to share a Mother’s Day with my mom.  Like all moms, she never had an “owner’s manual” when it came to raising a child.  She learned; she intuited; she struggled; she made mistakes; and she left an indelible mark on me.

I have written on this blog a few of the many things I am grateful for in my upbringing. There is one, though, that always brings a smile to my face. I often shared it with my students. Here is the short story.

Photo by Steve Piscitelli

We lived in a small New England town. I received an even smaller weekly allowance.  If memory serves me correctly, it started at 25 cents and eventually “escalated” to about a buck a week.

In our small town was a savings and loan institution. Back in the day, this bank had accounts known as “Christmas Clubs” and “Vacation” accounts.  You’d get a coupon book that served (again, as best I can remember) as deposit slips. Fifty-two slips. A way to remember to put money away each week for the future gifts and opportunities.

My mother took me to the bank, and we “opened” one of those for me.  Each week, she expected me to (and I did) go to the bank and place 50% of my allowance in the account.  I never particularly enjoyed doing it. But I complied. At the end of the year, because of my growing discipline I had a few bucks saved.

That habit, however, had much more to do about discipline than money. The amount of money at the end of the year paled compared to the life lessons learned about goal setting, priority management, commitment, and financial planning.

My mother helped me to understand that little steps are important. In fact, over the years I came to realize a larger lesson—there are no little steps. Each step is an important step toward the larger goal. Each step helps to plant deeper roots. More than wishes. More than quick catch up. More than cramming at the end. In fact, without consistent effort over the long haul, achievement is spotty at best.

Shortcuts shortchange the long run.

For that lesson, I am forever grateful.

Photo by Steve Piscitelli. ©2019

Video Recommendation for the Week

Thank you, Mom.

My book,
Community as a Safe Place to Land,
has been released! At this point, you can purchase it on Amazon.
More information at www.stevepiscitelli.com.

Make it an inspiring and grateful week and H.T.R.B. as needed.

You can still order my book Stories about Teaching, Learning, and Resilience: No Need to be an Island (2017). Another university recently (February 2019) adopted it for training and coaching purposes. Contact me if you and your team are interested in doing the same.

Consider it for a faculty orientation or a mentoring program. The accompanying videos would serve to stimulate community-building conversations at the beginning of a meeting.

My podcasts can be found at The Growth and Resilience Network® (http://stevepiscitelli.com/media-broadcast/podcast).

You will find more about what I do at www.stevepiscitelli.com.

©2019. Steve Piscitelli
The Growth and Resilience Network®