This morning after I parked my car in the parking garage I always park in when I go to work, I walked toward the stairs and spit my gum toward the trash can. I missed, but not by much. I continued to walk on without picking up my piece of gum.
As I walked down the stairs a thought crossed my mind: What if I was the one who cleaned that garage? What if it was my garage? Would I still leave the piece of gum on the floor? It’s easier to think about this in a smaller context like the home. If I drop a piece of trash on the floor, someone in my home is going to have to pick it up eventually. If I’m the only one who lives there, I’m much more likely to pick that up right away. If there are roommates, or better yet, a mom, no need. One of them will get it.
These are selfish behaviors we learn at a young age.
In my company, one of our core values is “Take Ownership”. But what if we took this to the extreme? What if literally we acting like we owned everything (as it came to taking care of it, not as it came to being selfish or possessive about it.) What if every object or place we ever interacted with we treated as if we were the ones who owned it, took care of it, cleaned it, etc. How different would things look?
Would the streets be cleaner? Would houses be nicer? Would public restrooms *GASPS*…would you not hate your life having to enter a gas station restroom?
I think we can’t begin to grasp the enormity of how different the world would look if every human took ownership of the things they came in contact with. But hey, let’s start with you and me and see what a difference that makes.
*Goes to pick up gum he left on parking garage floor on his way out the building*