Stangers are hidden gems of wisdom

  All of us love a good story of some one overcoming a battle, hearing a unique experience, or learning a great life lesson. Think of how you feel just prior to encountering any one of those things; a renewed sense of hope in humanity, a different outlook, an answer to questions you have searched for, motivation, and an eagerness to apply new ideas to our lives. These are often turning points, personal references, and can be life changing information. Gems of wisdom are not what the media is pumping out on a regular basis, so we need to go out and find it.
  The gems of this kind of wisdom are all around us, every stranger we meet has some thing to share with that same kind of potential. Every day people have the most extraordinary lessons. Unfortunately we often limit who we will consider listening to due to prejudices, fixed perspectives, or some type of cynical road blocks we have set out through life. If you hear that the greatest life lesson to a man in his 50's was that serving people is the source of happiness, what image comes to mind of that person? Most of us would then value other things this person has to say about things, but would be surprised to find out this is the answer a home less man gave me. The reality is there are amazing people with extraordinary stories all around us.
  Listening to a person talk about over coming a hard time allows them to relive that victory. Allowing some one to share an experience is building a platform of dignity for that person, and applying a lesson learned from some one else is a gift for both parties.
  I will be continuing this blog to bring you those gems, and encourage you to spend 3 mins talking to a stranger about what is meaningful to them vs 3 hours talking about sports with friends and see what you learn.