Charge or Drain

In life, there are people that charge and others that drain. Some people you see briefly and your step has some extra pep to help you bounce through the day. Other people you almost dread seeing because they drain the very essence of your energy.

Obviously there are many shades to either side of the equation and of course things vary with moods and how you feel overall. What doesn’t change is that most times people are not conscious of the toll or boon they are in someone else’s life.

For my part, as a teen I was often one to brood even though I often had a cheery disposition. I thought I was pretty Ok and that people hung out with me and enjoyed my company. Then in college, a fellow student whom I was good friends with actually told me that they couldn’t talk to me anymore because I was too negative, something that actually blew up in my face a couple of other times during that period in my life. It was an eye opening experience because sometimes you need a dry slap in the face to have some sense knocked into you and clearly see your areas of opportunity.

Did it sting? Of course. It still does but that’s a good thing because it’s a reminder that I have the choice to charge or drain, to be positive or to drag people down. As time passes I make much more of a conscious effort to give the best of me and to be fully conscious of how I am. I won’t be rosy every day, and sometimes the sun doesn’t shine so wonderfully, but I have a choice of what I put out there and how I affect other people.

That’s why I crack jokes when I’m sick, that’s why I lend an ear even when I’m drained, that’s why I try to be a highlight in someone’s day. Does it always work? Of course not. But it doesn’t mean I can’t try and keep giving my best, however I define that on any given day.

So what about you? Do you charge or drain?