There is no delight in owning anything unshared. – Seneca
Sharing music, it's a beautiful thing.
What does that mean?
This seems fairly straight forward, doesn’t it? How many things have you ever purchased that you deliberately hid from the world, that nobody else knew about? We tend to get stuff to either share or to show off. Some people go so far as to do this with spouses, but most of us limit ourselves to mere trinkets.
Yeah, you may have bought the Corvette or Mustang because it’s a neat car, fast in a straight line or in the curves. But admit it, you really like being seen in it, right? It really could be any car (well, perhaps not a Chevette), I know I have been there, even if it was with a vastly inferior vehicle.
Why is sharing important?
Sharing, it has been said, doubles the joy of having something. That is why it’s more fun eating with friends and family than eating alone. Same for drinking and (in most cases) long trips. Sharing also allows you to have a common experience and common memory, to relive and share again, both with those people as well as other friends.
Art seems to give some people the biggest a delight when they share it with others. Some take it to excess, but most people seem to enjoy art because they want to share it with others.
For me, it’s hard to read my twitter feed without interjecting some of it into the conversations (or quiet time) at home. This annoys my wife sometimes, but it amuses her most of the time. Sharing is also the reason most people retweet something. They want to share it with some of their friends, right?
Some of us have bad memories of childhood and ‘sharing,’ but most of these memories are not of true sharing. I think it would be helpful to stop equating the act of other people stealing from us with the term sharing.
Where can I apply this in my life?
I have applied sharing to many aspects of my life, from helping a neighbor move a couple cubic yards of rock to lending a hand on the roadside (changing a tire). I share tools, knowledge and tips with anyone who asks. Sometimes they wish they hadn’t. If you’ve never asked an engineer a question and received a two hour answer, you really need to try it! 8)
Do you have problems sharing? If so, it might help to try to figure out why it is difficult for you. Did you have a traumatic experience when you were young? Did you have siblings that were of the mind set “anything I can grab is mine”? Did you become defensive for some reason? Was there a shortage or scarcity in your life that made you reluctant to lose things?
Those feelings may have served you well in the past, but are they holding you back? Do they still serve your needs today? You might want to consider how well these feelings have been working for you these last few years (or farther back, if applicable). See if you can let go and be more free in your sharing. Remember sharing isn’t the same as giving away. Sharing a book means you expect to get it back, giving it away means you don’t.
Try to come up with some logical and some emotional reasons to share. Don’t dwell on the past, and try to ignore the times when sharing went badly. Focus on when you truly shared and things went well. Emotionally, spiritually, physically, with experiences or with things, focus on how good it felt to share. This can help you get yourself thinking differently about sharing.
You can also work on your sharing skills by starting small. Meet a friend for lunch (everyone pays for their own), share a story with another friend, lend a book to someone else. Simply doing something outside your sharing comfort zone will help to expand your skills. Practice will make things easier, and each success helps to build you confidence.
Sharing really does make things better. For me, at least, a hug is better if it’s shared. Same for a kiss, a kind word or a story. Work at it, slowly if need be, but keep working. It really is worth it.
From: Twitter, @philo_quotes
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/luciusanna133699.html
Photo by Ed Yourdon
