Moment-to-Moment Optimism

By Dr. Russ,

Every once in awhile a reader sends me some material that strikes me as so compelling that I find I must share it with the entire readership of Moment-to-Moment Optimism.  Today, I refer you to a brief, but very inspiring video, about how a young adult with Down’ syndrome took a simple idea, made it personal, and had a huge impact on the daily optimism of those he “touched."

A bagger with Down’s syndrome at a large supermarket listened carefully to the speech of the consultant hired to improve customer service and loyalty.  He heard her say that everyone can make a difference by creating memories for the customers that will motivate them to come back.

About a month after her speech, she got a call from 19 year old Johnny the bagger with Down’s.  He said at first he couldn’t think of anything special as he was just a bagger.  What could a bagger do?

Then, he said an idea came to him.  Every night after work he would look for an inspirational thought for the day, and with Dad’s help made multiple copies of the message on the computer.  He cut the quotes into small cards and signed his name on the back. He put the message of the day into each customer’s bag.

It wasn’t long before Johnny’s checkout line was three times longer than any other.  When the store manager tried to open up new lanes the customers stood pat saying they wanted Johnny’s “thought for the day.”

To see the rest of the story and to see how Johnny’s simple act of wanting to make a difference transformed the culture of the store form one of ordinary to one of extraordinary OPTIMISM : click on the link and view the short video: "Johnny's Story."