“We don’t see you enough,” my client and good friend said to me.

“But have I fallen flat with any of my promises?” I asked.

“No, not at all. And we know you’re busy. We just appreciate all the advice over the years and love having you check in,” they said.

That’s it, isn’t it? It’s not a negative thing when people want you to reach out more when they want YOU.

They just want to feel like you haven’t forgotten them.

This is especially true as our clients and friends get older.

They have less going on but more to worry about: kids, grandkids, health, and age in general.

And it’s so easy to check in, to call and just say, “Hello. How are things going? How is the family?”

We ALL get so wrapped up in our daily lives. We easily forget about them – or, more accurately, think of them often but fail to act on it. While minor and inconsequential, those things may seem to us at the time, they are truly meaningful to others.

So, take a minute and check in. Say hello. Make the time. Remind yourself that these times are precious and will not be forever. It feels like just yesterday my daughter was born. And now she will soon be 12! That feels like it happened overnight, and that’s just how fast life passes us by.

If it feels that way to me, imagine what it feels like to our clients and friends who once were titans of industry and now sit with little to do. Fewer people around. More time to think and contemplate life.

Be that person that helps add a little more color and vibrance to their lives, a little more fun. Share what’s going on.

Most importantly, listen to what’s going on with them. There is probably a pearl or two in there that can really make your day.

Probably theirs, too.

-J.D.