Are you someone who is gets easy affected by other’s people’s garbage? What does that mean anyway? Well you know, you are on your way to work in the morning and someone cuts you off, you notice cars all around you drivers are rude, not paying attention, you get to work and someone doesn’t hold the door for you and your arms are full of things, you get to your desk and your boss has a last minute deadline you are expected to complete in 2 hours and you have 10 calls waiting in voicemail….Is this enough to cause you to have a bad day? Well, for me, it use to be. I often found myself frustrated and personalizing everything that heppen. For some time now I have been practicing taking things on, but not in. I realized that if I let other people’s issues (or garbage) hit me, I was probably taking on more than I needed to. Being an impathetic, I have found that this valuable skill can be great when I am relating to others and listening to their stories. Often people like knowing that others can understand how they feel. It has been a gift that has long allowed me to establish rapport and assist people in processing what is going on with them. Too much of a good thing can be overwhelming too. I had to learn how to be present but not be over absorped. This story helped me to begin to pull it all together, see what you think?

“Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson.
I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab.
This is what happened: I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station.
We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden,
a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.

My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded,
and missed the other car by mere inches! The driver of
the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident,
whipped his head around and started yelling bad words at us.

My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy.
And I mean, he was actually friendly!
So, I asked him, “Why did you just do that?
This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!”

And this is when my taxi driver told me about
what I now call, “The Law of the Garbage Truck.”
Many people are like Garbage Trucks.
They run around full of garbage, full of frustration,
full of anger, and full of disappointment.

As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it,
and if you let them, they’ll dump it on you.
When someone wants to dump on you, don’t take it personally.
Instead, just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.
You’ll be happier because you did.

So this was it: The “Law of the Garbage Truck.”


I began to see that this is what I would allow others to do to me. I would find myself, all worked up, anxious and irritable over little things that happened. Talk about stressful!

I realized it did not have to be this way, it was a choice I was making, I would experience what happened, but not take it on as mine. The practice I used to do this was smile, and wish them well and move on to talking about solutions instead of the problems. I never let anyone wallow too much in self pity, it serves only to keep that feeling alive.

Remember…Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting.
Good parents know that they have to welcome
their children home from school with hugs and kisses.
Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present,
and at their best for the people they care about.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let
Garbage Trucks take over their day.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?
What would your life be like if you practiced smiling and wishing well to others when unexpected emotionally charged things happened? For me, I began to feel much calmer, less stress and yes, even happier.Life’s too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so …
Love the people who treat you right;
Forget about the ones who don’t.
Believe that everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance … take it and if it changes your life … let it!

Nobody said it would be easy —
They just promised it would be worth  

Copied from Inspiration Line  http://www.inspirationline.com/daily-inspirational-quotes.htm~

Author Unknown
(Contributed by Barbara who lives in Ft. Mojave, Arizona)~Author Unknown
(Contributed by Barbara who lives in Ft. Mojave, Arizona)

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