“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.” – Joshua 24:15
During my annual physical exam each year my doctor always asks, among other Medicare required questions, if I am depressed. Having been my physician for almost forty years, he seldom waits for a response because he already knows that no, I am not depressed, he simply needs to check the box. A couple of years ago, though, my curiosity aroused by the many articles being published about the epidemic of loneliness and depression in our society, I asked if he saw a lot of depression among his patients. His answer surprised me. “Yes,” he said, “because too many people get caught up in all that stuff going on out there that they can’t do anything about,” as he gestured with his hands toward the outside world.
Some have said there are two kinds of people in the world, those who make things happen, and those who look up and wonder, “what happened?” In other words, there is a vast chasm between those who diligently strive to improve the world around them by engaging in productive activities, and those who passively resign themselves to fate. How often as an executive coach have I heard clients complain that their careers are stalled or their jobs miserable because of the boss. My challenge to them is always the same. It is unlikely you are going to change the boss’s behavior, I tell them, so what are some ways you can change YOUR behavior that might improve your circumstance?
To be clear, my physician was not casting dispersions on those suffering clinical depression or other serious illnesses, rather he was referring to patients who were otherwise mentally healthy. Instead, just as he might encourage hypertensive patients to eat better, exercise more, and lose weight, so (just guessing) he might prescribe healthier habits for this particular class of depressed patients as well, such as consuming less social media and becoming more involved in productive activities.
“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,” for to choose requires an act of the will. It is an act of the will to decide whether to be active and productive versus passively resigning ourselves to fate; an act of the will to take responsibility for our jobs and careers instead of being bullied by the boss. So, let us do good, be productive, and make something happen – else we might find ourselves wondering, “what happened?”