Moment With Betty

Saint Josemaria always saw in the care for little things a way to respond to God’s infinite love for us, we will require perseverance and constant mortification because “that is the only way to make life more agreeable for others”. (Furrow, 991). “Do everything for Love. Thus, there will be no little things: everything will be big. Perseverance in little things for Love is heroism.” (The Way, 813)

To achieve heroism and great things we must start small, and we have to start with ourselves by putting Love in every little thing we do every day.

It was Napoleon who said, “The only conquests which are permanent and leave no regrets are our conquests over ourselves.”

So as leaders, businesspeople, employees, fathers, and mothers, if we take care of little or small things with excellence then we will accomplish big things with success. Trust me, this is not an easy task, it is a big responsibility because it requires that we pay attention to details and persevere and doing it for love.

 Take for example in your community, if as a leader you do not care for things as little as cleanliness of the environment, you will be surprised at the negative effect of this action on the community and the people.  Or, as a businessperson, you decide to start your business very big rather than starting small, any little mistake will cause a colossal loss to you and the business may collapse. Every successful business today is said to have started small and gradually grew big. Same goes for the celebrities that we look up to today. Do you think they achieved the celebrity status overnight? Of course not! They took care of the little things (that matters) in a consistent manner which led them to bigger things. The little things don’t take that much time but make all the difference in the long term. Emily Dickinson once said, “If you take care of the small things, the big things take care of themselves.”

So how do we take care of the little things so that the big things will take care of themselves?

First, we need to plan well and prioritize rightly. As a leader, businessperson, father, or mother, take time to identify what is most important to you. Think of the little things you care about the most; determine that which is truly meaningful. Determine which of your actions will generate effectiveness and productivity and which are wasting your time. Draw up a timetable if you need to so that you will be orderly and productive. 

Attend to your tasks according to its importance, be it at the community level, workplace, or home. Never neglect any task or chores even if it is as little as arranging the picture frames on the shelves, cleaning of the restrooms or washrooms. Every corner of your house is important and should be given the desired attention. We wouldn’t want to inconvenience our guests with a nauseating odour.  Delegate duties if you find that your tasks are overwhelming, don’t be a superman or superwoman. This will only give you pain and stress.

Start small and with what is meaningful because by doing so, ensures that you’re being honest with yourself. If you focus on the things you cannot do, or the things that you think should be meaningful rather than the ones that truly are, you’ll find yourself getting nothing done. So be honest as you identify and prioritize the small things that are important to you.  After all Saint Josemaria Escriva, in point 487 of Furrow, said” Great Souls pay much attention to little things” and in point 829 of the Way, he said that before God, no occupation is great or small, but that everything gains its value with the Love with which it is done.