Empowerment comes from within
Comments (...)Groundhog Day was earlier this month. My youngest daughter (hard to believe my youngest is a teenager) and I celebrated the day by watching the movie “Groundhog Day” starring Bill Murray. If you haven’t seen it, the main character, Phil Connors, is a self-absorbed weatherman from Pittsburgh who visits Punxsutawney to report on the weather prediction by the world’s most famous groundhog. Unfortunately for Phil, he begins a cycle of reliving Feb. 2, Groundhog Day, over and over again. At first, he relishes the idea of having the ability to self-indulge without consequence, because he knows it all disappears and starts over again the next day. However, through time he realizes the futility of it all, and becomes depressed, attempting to end the loop by taking his own life, only to find out that no matter how hard he tries the day just starts over again.
Eventually, Phil discovers a measure of peace by engaging in self-improvement activities, including learning to play the piano and reading classic books. In the process, he realizes that true fulfillment comes from using one’s talents to help others. He takes ownership of that day and makes it his mission to make it the very best day for those around him. Ultimately, he creates a day in which he fixes car tires, saves townspeople from certain death and crafts a report on the Groundhog Day celebration so eloquent that all the other stations turn their microphones to him. In achieving this outward focus, the day finally ends and life resumes for him, a far happier, joyful man.
How often are we blinded to the needs of others by a concentration on our own desires? How often do we find that the things we think will make us happy actually do just the opposite? Are you waiting for someone else to do the things you were placed on earth to do? Are you waiting for someone else to empower you to do the things you know you should be doing? What are you waiting for? The only human that can empower you to do what you know you should do is yourself.
At Skiff Medical Center, we all have a copy of a book called “The Florence Prescription.” This book is a story about what Florence Nightingale, the first nurse, would think if she came back and entered a modern hospital. The whole idea of the book is that true fulfillment comes from individuals who are self-empowered and working together, creating a culture of ownership, a culture that is defined by its values and the commitment of its people to a calling, not a job.
More than a year ago, our hospital accepted the challenge to aspire to a culture of ownership where people are committed to our shared values, are engaged in our work and with our coworkers and take pride in our work and in our professions. We live this out by holding ourselves responsible for our attitudes and our actions, by expecting a hospital that is free from toxic emotional negativity and constantly thinking about what is best for our patients, community and coworkers rather than focusing inward on ourselves. You may have noticed the very visible commitment we have made to this idea in the hundreds of hand prints on one of the foundation walls in the lower level of our building.
As a hospital, we have made a commitment to never be ashamed of what we do together, to never be accepting of negative attitudes and hurtful behaviors and to constantly find ways to improve ourselves and the care we provide. I am proud to be a member of the Skiff family, and I am proud to live in Newton and Jasper County.
I encourage you to join us on this journey by taking the self-empowerment pledge. It is available on our website and is a simple list of seven promises, one for each day of the week. Join us as we continue our journey, and remember that only by looking outside of yourself can you truly fulfilled. No one can make you look outside yourself but you.
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