Love all, Serve all.
When I was about 16 I went to school in Yorkshire and we went to London on a history trip. And the great excitement about that trip was not the history lectures we were going to but the fact that a small group of us were going to cut loose (sorry, school) and go to the Hard Rock Cafe in Piccadilly.
This was back in 1986 before the Hard Rock was a ubiquitous global chain. This was the only Hard Rock Cafe in the United Kingdom. It was a very big deal.
So a group of about 6 of us went - so excited - sat down and then our waitress appeared. She looked like a glamorous rock ’n’ roll granny. She must have been in her 70s, wearing a mini-dress uniform and Reebok hi-tops, red lipstick, grey hair in an up-do. That blew our teenage minds for starters! I can still picture her today carrying our huge plates of burgers, chips, ribs and so on.
But what really sticks in my mind was a badge or pin that she was wearing with the Hard Rock logo. It said:
LOVE ALL, SERVE ALL
I’d like to say that’s influenced me ever since but it didn’t.
Of course, it didn’t. When I was a teenager I thought it meant they would just welcome any kind of customer and that all were welcome.
Now I am older, and probably because I am a coach, it comes to mind often. Love all, serve all.
In my role, I work with lots of different people who reveal their deepest longings, fears and thoughts - so I get to work with ALL and hear ALL.
And coaching is a service role - the coach is a tool that a client uses to help them live a fulfilled life. I consider this part of my life as serving others on a day-to-day basis.
I also think in this day and age when there is so much diversity of opinion which often seems to polarise people into two camps the "love all" part is useful.
I don’t think that "Love all" means you have to like everyone or agree all the time. But it puts me in mind of a quote I also love:
"Being Heard is so close to Being Loved, that for the average person they are almost indistinguishable"
So ‘hearing’ people can equate to loving them. Helping them feel seen and heard.
So how do you do that? Well, I think it requires ACTIVE listening and seeking to understand. Listening to understand rather than to respond.
When I meet or hear people I instinctively don’t like, I try to understand them, look at it from their point of view, and look at something from a different perspective than my own. I may have to get to the point where we ‘agree to disagree’ but at least, where possible, I’ve ‘heard’ them.
In terms of ‘serve all’ for me, that’s quite simple. It’s about adding value where you can, helping where you can and to the best of your capability, and making a positive contribution.
Remember, you can’t pour from an empty cup, so this isn’t just about putting everyone else’s needs ahead of your own. Do that and you’ll be no use to anyone because you’ll be exhausted. But it’s about using your energy in the right way to help, serve, and make things better.
Okay, so Love all, serve all. What do you think? Inspiring? Something you can live by? Let me know your thoughts.
Be fearlessly YOU
Tracy
