Whenever we say something, whenever we meet somebody, whenever we go somewhere, we leave a trace in the sense that after our encounter we have changed something. That change may be obvious and lasting, for example when a person that we talked to has an aha-moment. But the change can also be subtle and fleeting, for example when we leave footprints in the sand. The idea that our presence leaves a trace is known in forensic science as Locard’s Exchange Principle. David Mummery beautifully explains in his essay Every Contact Leaves a Trace how this principle can be applied in medicine by General Practitioners. The fact that we leave a trace as we go through life was used by Sherlock Holmes who exploited the trace left behind by criminals to identify and expose them.
But this newsletter is not about criminals, it is about the trace that we have leave behind as we interact with others. Perhaps we have inspired others, perhaps we have let them down. We may have planted seeds of new growth in others, or we may have trampled down such new growth. (Teachers, are you paying attention?) I invite you to reflect on the past year and ask the question, what trace have you left behind with your encounters? In what sense have you empowered or encouraged others, and when have you let them down? What positive impact did you have? Where and when did you have a negative impact? I have to admit that I have had both positive and negative impacts. The negative impacts occurred when I was tired or allowed myself to be carried away by negative self-talk, cynicism, or judgement. If you feel you had a negative impact at times, who or what triggered that impact? And when were you at your best and you had a positive impact?
What can you do to make a positive impact? Being intentional to make such an impact certainly is important, but this is not enough. We also need to be aware of where we are mentally, and what the effects are of our thoughts, words, and actions. But if we are exhausted or not doing well in some other sense, we can easily get carried away, be unaware, and forget our intentions. We need to exercise self-care if we are to show up harmoniously. In our work-oriented society many of us tend to ignore self-care, possibly because we confuse self-care with selfishness. But taking care of ourselves is important if we are to leave a positive trace behind!
Now that we are about to step into a new year, are you willing to set an intention to have a positive impact? To be specific, you could break down this positive impact to different aspects of your life such as work, home, social life, and the environment. You could write down your intention to leave behind a positive trace in the different realms of your life and review that intention regularly in the coming year. We don’t know what the coming year will bring, but we know one thing: we will have encounters and we will leave a trace. What is the trace that you want to leave behind?