I lost a very dear friend on Monday to heart disease. I am still in shock and my heart carries a great deal of sadness for his family, colleagues and friends. I hired Michael at my former employer and worked with him for 8 years. Michael was in the prime of his life and it was cut short at an early age of 59.
Michael was full of life and had an ever present smile that would light up a room. He was one of the most caring, sincere, passionate people I have ever known. Michael will be dearly missed.
I spoke to Michael late last week as he was about to be transferred to Johns Hopkins for another surgery. He was concerned and knew he had a long rehabilitation in front of him. As much as I wanted to talk about his condition, surgery and taking care of himself, he kept deflecting the conversation back to me and how my family and I were doing. He was very interested in how my business was progressing and what was going on with my wife, Lisa and our two daughters. That was Michael. He deeply cared about his friends, colleagues and clients. He put them first in his life.
I have been thinking a lot about Michael; how he lived his life, what we can learn from it and apply to our daily lives that will help us to be a better friend, colleague, parent, spouse, leader and person.
For Michael it was all about relationships. He demonstrated that by making a connection with everyone he came across, one conversation at a time. He sincerely cared for everyone he worked with, his clients and his friends. He was focused on understanding their issues, challenges, problems and concerns. Michael was an artist when it came to demonstrating deep listening and questioning to get to the heart of the issue. He put the interests of others ahead of himself. When I consider the traits of the ideal servant leader and person, I immediately think of Michael. People want to surround themselves with folks who care and want to help others. This is Michael’s legacy. I cannot think of a better one for me to live up to every day for the rest of my life. How about you?
At the same time we need to be serving others we need to take the time to care for ourselves. Life is tough. We have a lot of demands placed upon us, deadlines and priorities to meet, meetings to attend, issues to take care of. This is not going away. So find the time to do something for yourself. Be selfish!
Michael worried a lot about his health. A few years ago he started to exercise more, eat better and lost weight. He looked and felt great. I wish Michael would have kept it up and followed this advice more often.
It is important to take care of yourself. Exercising regularly and eating healthy are important ways for you to shield yourself from many diseases that are common as we grow older, including heart disease. Exercising and eating healthy foods boost your immune system, give you more energy, reduces stress and help you sleep better. Think of yourself as a corporate athlete and commit the time to help you stay on top of your game.
As you go about your daily life journey, I encourage you to focus on helping others and at the same time, help yourself. Finding the proper balance and committing to it, will be the key.
I will miss you Michael!