Sean Dasher
Contributing Writer
Success Academy Trainer

I’m an avid TED talk viewer. My interest began with Simon Sinek. “Start with Why.” It is still watched today by millions.

I travel across the country training residential service providers. Watching a TED talk helps me get through an always changing airline schedule.
Rather than getting caught in the constant bombardment of social media. I prefer learning something through a Ted talk. One of the latest, in an extensive list of talks I have viewed, is one by Jason B. Rosenthal. “The Journey Through loss and Grief”. This talk was a rollercoaster emotional ride about a husband that lost his wife.

His wife, in a very public way, gave him an invitation or “blank slate” to move on after her passing (at home in hospice care). She was a very public figure. The feelings the talk evoked were deep and on some levels, was something I can’t describe. The talk brought back memories of watching my father in-law go through the hospice process to the end. But, it triggered sympathy in me that we can all relate to every day.

In our business’s no matter what the brand, trade, or role we all deal with at least one loss per day. Some major, most minor.

It could have been the manager that failed to achieve the plan for the month or quarter. The technician that had the worst call of their lives affecting the way they treat the next customer. We all deal with something.

The “ah ha” moment that stuck with me was at the end of the talk. The speaker asked, “what are you going to do with your blank page or fresh start?”

All I had to do was turn the page.

I sat down and looked at my note book (the latest volume #4 of 4). I noticed all I had to was turn the page and there was room for whatever I wanted to do, my “blank page”. This can apply to you as well. Not only to the last call but to tomorrow’s budget, next install, or whatever life throws you. A blank page is new, and fresh.

What happens on that last call isn’t going to happen again unless we allow it to. We will only miss the goal tomorrow or next month if we keep the same mindset and not be looking for areas to improve. Our minds are powerful underused machines. Sometimes they are telling us things and we don’t even realize it.

The way we control our feelings and thinking will affect the next page in our lives. We all have things coming at us besides our chosen career.  Family issues, bills that must be paid, ball games and piano recitals we must attend. The key, is to give ourselves permission to move on. We can make mistakes and everyone has and will make more in the future.

If you don’t think you can move past something, then I give you permission to turn the page. I know now that’s all I need to do so I can move forward. We can all learn from past mistakes or losses, never dwell, learn and improve.

Now, Turn the Page.