The Small Moments that Make a Big Difference

By Greg Fullerton

I get a kick out of dreaming up book titles for underachievers:

“Three-and-a-Half Steps to Underachievement”

“What Underachievers Don’t Want You To Know”

“Instead of Reach For The Sky, Reach For Your Ankles”

“The Foolproof Formula for Failure, Using My Secrets”

“Do Half as Much in Twice the Time”

“Go Halfway”

“Money is For People Who Intend to Pay Their Bills”

“Start Procrastinating NOW”

Here’s one I thought of when I was much heavier:

“Disadvantages to Weight Loss: When You’re Skinny You’re Easier to Kidnap”

But seriously.

A lot of people fear success because they think it entails something big, grandiose, world-shaking.

They discount their private victories that seem relatively petty and obscure. They don’t think that their small efforts make any noteworthy difference.

And in this mind frame, they miss out on the simple, yet crucial opportunities presented to them daily to uplift others and make the world a better place.

One of my favorite quotes comes from William Shakespeare who wrote,

‘If you can look into the seeds of time, and say which grain will grow and which will not, speak then unto me.”

We have no idea how our daily actions will impact others and the consequences they carry.

How many countless stories are there out there, real or that nobody knows about, where one little seed of thoughtfulness, or one little seed of kindness made a profound difference?

One time my daughter called me scared because she smelled gas in her apartment. I drove over, checked out the situation, and we called the gas company.

While we were waiting for a service man to show up, on a whim I asked my daughter if she wanted to go get something to eat.

Since she’s moved out of the house we haven’t had as much time together as I’d like. I was busy. I could easily have passed up the moment.

But we spent a wonderful two hours together. Just talking. Enjoying each other’s company. Growing closer. I told her I loved her.

I’ll never forget that time. Did it change the world? Who knows. I don’t care. It was just the right thing to do, a good thing to do.

That was a pleasant story. Often, however, in the quiet pursuit of greatness, we’re required to do difficult things.

We suffer and sacrifice, strain and struggle behind the curtains of life. We receive no prize, no pat on the back.

But it’s worth it. It’s the small moments that build to form the whole of our life.

In The Power of Truth, William George Jordan wrote,

“The reformer must realize without a trace of bitterness that the busy world cares little for his struggles. It cares only to joy in his final triumph. It will share his feast, but not his fast.”

There are little things that go on every day in everybody’s life that are big, reforming events that we have no clue about.

But they matter. They are real, and they are meaningful, and they matter.

Reforming — making a difference — is not about conquering the world. It’s not about becoming a superstar on the glittering stage of life.

It’s about being aware of the small and simple things and taking advantage of them at the right moments.

It’s about encouraging words and extended hands when you have no audience. It’s about dealing with your struggles gracefully and graciously.

And it’s a process, not an event. This process is comprised of thousands of little steps in your everyday life.

Once you identify and become true to yourself, you have no idea who and how that will impact.

But you don’t need to know. You just need to know what’s right, then follow through with courage — regardless of who sees you or how simple and meaningless your actions may seem.