A LESSON IN LIFE

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview; the director did the last interview, made the last decision. The director discovered from the CV, that the youth's academic result was excellent. The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarship in school?" and the youth answered "no". The director asked, " Is it your father who paid for your school fees?" the youth answered, "My father passed away when I was one year old, it is my mother who paid for my school fees." The director asked, "Where did your mother work?" the youth answered, "My mother worked as a cleaner." The director requested the youth to show him his hands. The youth showed a pair of hand that were smooth and perfect. 

The director asked, "Did you ever help your mother wash the clothes?" The youth answered, "Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books, furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me." The director said, "I have a request, when you go home today, look at your mother's hand, and then come and see me tomorrow morning." The youth felt that as the chance of landing the job is high, when he went back, he happily wanted to see his mother's hand. His mother felt strange, happy but mixed with fear, she showed her hands to the kid. The youth looked at his mother's hand slowly, his tears rolled down he cheeks. He never noticed that his mother's hands were so wrinkled, and that there are so many bruises in her hand. 

This is the first time the youth realized and experienced that it was this pair of hand that washed clothes everyday to earn him the school fees, the bruises in the mother's hand is the price that the mother paid for his graduation and academic excellence and probably his future. After looking at him Mum's hands, the youth quietly cleaned all remaining clothes for his mother. That night, mother and son talked for a very long time. 

Next morning, the youth went to the director's office. The director noticed the tear in the youth's eye, asked: "Can you tell what have you done and learned yesterday?" The youth answered, " I looked at my mother's hand, and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes."' The director asked, "Please tell me your feelings." 

The youth replied:

Number 1 - I now appreciate the fact that without my mother, I would not be successful today.

Number 2 -, I now know how to work together with my mother; I realize how difficult and tough it is to get something done.

Number 3 - I know the importance and value of family relationships. 

The director said, "This is what I am asking, I want to recruit a person that can appreciate the help of others, a person that understands the challenges of others to get thing done, and a person that would not put money as his only goal in life to be a Manager. You are hired." 

Later on, this young person worked very hard, and received the respect of his subordinates, every employees worked diligently and in a team, the company's result improved tremendously. 

A child, who has been protected and habitually given whatever he wanted, develops an "entitlement mentality" and always put himself first. He is ignorant of others effort. When he starts work, he assumes every person must listen to him, and when he becomes a Manager, he never understands the challenges facing his employee, he never expresses words of appreciation, and always blames others. 

You can let your kid live in a big house, eat a good meal, learn piano, watch a big screen TV. But when you are cutting grass, please let them experience it. After a meal, let them wash the dishes together with their brothers and sisters. It is not because you do not have money to hire a maid, but it is because you want to love them in a right way and give them an appreciation that everything in life does not come easy. 

The most important thing we all need to learn is how to appreciate the effort and experience the difficulty, and learn the ability to work with others to get things done.