You Are the Greatest Gift You Can Give

I was talking to my brothers the other day about what we were going to get our parents for Christmas. One brother responded "I'm coming home, that's my gift to them." He said it as a joke, but it's very true. We are the greatest gift we could ever give someone. Too often we take people for granted and it's not until we lose them we realize how much we should have valued the time we spent together.

Your time and your attention are the greatest gifts you can ever give to anyone. Everyone will always be able to come up with an excuse as to why they're unable to get together and hang out. A good excuse or not it's still an excuse. And I get it, sometimes there really are things beyond our control and seeing someone just isn't an option, but when you decide someone is a priority, you make time for them and you will make it happen.

Be sure to value the time with whoever you are with. Your time is valuable, but so is their's. Give them your full attention! I find too often these days we are with someone, but we aren't really present. We're distracted by our jobs, our families, our thoughts, and more likely than not, our phones. When was the last time you had a conversation with someone and you didn't check your phone multiple times? When was the last time you turned off your phone or put it on silent so you weren't disturbed by a text or a tweet? When was the last time you really valued everyone's time?

This holiday season I'd like to try to encourage everyone to take a step back and truly enjoy and value yourself and those around you. We are all so lucky to be here and surrounded by the people we are. Please don't wait, because you will never get this time back.