A Barrel Full of Monkeys

I was at a meeting…when someone made a comment about getting a monkey off his back…and I started to think………’why did he take on the monkey to begin with?’

Then I began to wonder how many other people were walking around with monkeys on their backs and looking to pawn them off on other unsuspecting souls. Kind people end up with other peoples monkey …you can tell who they are… their shoulders are usually bent in and hunched over a bit more than others.

Now you may not think I was referring to you…heck you probably were not aware of it…(you poor thing) I tell you, before you keep reading – look over your shoulder and make sure you don’t have a monkey or two on there!

Now here is the trick, it is not the giver, but the receiver who is responsible. It is your choice whether you take someone elses’ monkey.

These cute little critters can cause you lots of stress. Here is an example…you might even agree with me! It usually starts with a little phrase such as:
‘can you do me a favor?’

…you have a co-worker complaining about not having enough time to finish a report or project and asks you to help, your child tells you at the last minute he has a class project due the next day and asks you to help… etc. People are just looking for someone to carry their monkey.

Other times people might just be expressing problems or challenges going on in their lives “ marriage, money, job, etc.” When you depart, you keep worrying about them and thinking about their problem in your head they unloaded and guess what? You are the new parent of their monkeys sibling!!

If you can relate with this…here is a small suggestion that may keep your back monkey-free from other peoples monkeys (I’m sure you have enough with your own pesky critters)- what you should do is: listen, have compassion, empathize and then leave the conversation with, I’m sure you will figure it out.