Due to our favorite little initiative, Build Then Bless, we get to listen to really cool people (usually our team members) tell really cool stories about how they were able to help out another human being. We call these moments microinteractions, and we believe that they are the best way to truly change the world in which we live.
We love this world. We love the people that are in it. And we really, really love when those people help other people as we all journey through life.
It’s incredible to hear about all of the different ways our team thinks to help other people, and it is inspiring to listen to. We hope that Build Then Bless becomes a movement that is felt all over the world, but, for now, we’re happy to just be able to share a few of the stories we get to hear with hope that it inspires you to think outside of yourself and go make someone else’s day.
Remember: Build Then Bless is about microinteractions. That means that a Build Then Bless moment doesn’t have to be a grand gesture or cost a lot of money. It’s a small little moment of service, or picking up someone’s dinner bill, or leaving a generous tip for your waiter who’s having a rough day, etc., etc. It can really be anything. The whole point is to just see beyond yourself and your own needs and wants and start to look around you to find people that you can help.
Build Then Bless is by far the coolest part of working with the team at Lemonade Stand.
This particular story is incredibly touching and took a lot of little moments to build up into a pretty big one. It would have been a completely missed opportunity to help, though, had this team member not been looking out for ways in which he could serve on multiple occasions.
Mitch Buys Some Shoes
Mitch Labrum heads up the operations of our team, but he also leads out on a culture front, because he is almost always thinking of ways that he can serve other people around him.
This story about him is proof of that and shows us all why we need to follow the example of one of our amazing leaders.
One night, Mitch was one his way to pick up a grocery order that his wife had placed online at Wal-Mart. For some reason, the order had been placed at a location further away from their house than the one they usually went to. On a normal day he would have been at a completely different Wal-Mart than the one he ended up going to.
He got to the store, went straight over to the pick-up location, had his groceries put in the car, and was on his way. There was no need to go inside the store, barely even a need to get out of the car. It was a simple pick up.
Well, he saw someone outside the store that looked like they needed some help. Again, he should have been right back on his way home by now, but he felt that he needed to help this person. He wasn’t sure what they needed, so he thought it would be a good idea to head inside and grab them a gift card (just to reiterate, he had not planned on going inside when he got there), so they could get whatever they needed.
He went to get the gift card and felt that he should head over the self checkout rather than going through a traditional line. While in that line (on his way to help someone else out), he noticed a family in front of him whose card was declining. The family was buying groceries, some new shoes (the kids really needed them), and a few other things; however, their card continued to decline and wouldn’t allow the purchase to go through.
Mitch decided that he would go and purchase those things for that family, so they wouldn’t have to worry about it, and they could eat that night. The refused to let him pay, however, and an employee shuttled them over to the customer service counter to see what they could figure out.
Unable to help that family, Mitch went ahead and purchased the gift card. He finished his transaction, though, and was still really concerned about them. He chased down that employee and asked if they could go over to customer service and help them out.
He went over there and saw that the family was informing the employees to please take the groceries back and that they wouldn’t be able to afford them. Well, after a lot of convincing and emotions from all parties involved, Mitch was able to cover the cost for this family. He found out that they probably wouldn’t have been able to eat anything that night without this little helping hand. They had young kids and a new baby, and they were really struggling.
This meant the world to them. Everyone involved had their lives brightened a little bit that day.
These are the types of interactions that will change the world.
People need to look out for people.
Always be looking for ways that you can help!
Takeaway
The biggest takeaway from this story, for me, is to always pay attention—things happen for a reason, and you might just be what someone else is searching for or needing.
You’ll miss a lot of golden opportunities to help other people if you are too self-absorbed to even see them. There were a lot of little coincidences and things happening in perfect timing that night for Mitch to be right there when that family needed him.
Pay attention to those little details as they might lead you to be the miracle that someone else needs.
Another takeaway from this story is to simply be more grateful. We all pass through difficult things in life. You might be passing through something as you’re reading this. Maybe you’re in a spot similar to that family and you’re the one needing some help. I hope that you will find the help that you need to carry on!
If you’re not in that type of situation, though, I invite you to take some time to recognize all of the incredible things that you have in your life. If you have dinner on the table tonight, show some gratitude for that. Appreciate that you have the necessities of life. Not everyone does.
Part of gratitude is passing it on. Please find ways that you can go out of your way to help other people and to Build Then Bless them and make their life a little better. Be part of the reason that this world is a better place tomorrow than it was today. Don’t let it continue to get worse.
We love Build Then Bless and that we get to be a part of something so incredible and so much bigger than us. We are able to Build Then Bless because of our digital marketing company, Lemonade Stand. If you have any digital marketing needs and want to contribute to us allowing our team to go out and bless people, please reach out to us! We’d love to be able to help you!
If you’re interested in learning more about Build Then Bless, shoot us a message using this link.
We love to help and serve!