Day 183 of 365 - Old Awards

Recently an old friend gave me a box he had received years earlier that was meant for me. In opening it, I found this award along with a very nice note. Over the years of my career I have received a number of tchotchkes in recognition for my work. Some of them are gorgeous, made of everything from crystal to silver. Others are so cheap that they have fallen apart in the first five minutes of use.

As I look at this one, I think about what all my awards represent. They in one way or another tell me that I did a good job. But I can’t help thinking about the impact of my work on my life and especially the life of my family. The too numerous days of travel, late nights, weekends, holidays...all striving to achieve, to provide for my family while trying to “get ahead”. Was it worth it? I missed entire chunks of my son’s life as I traveled and worked so hard. Yet, those experiences shaped me, made me treasure my family even more today. They propelled me to become my own boss and set my own agenda and take risks that have at least on some level paid off for my family.

So again with the question, was it worth it? I don’t know, at least not yet.

And so it goes...