The Starving Baker

This past Friday I had the opportunity to attend a leadership lecture through my Catalyst Self-Development class presented by Dr. Tim Elmore, the founder and president of Growing Leaders.  And this could not have come at a more perfect time. This last semester has been absolutely crazy to say the least. Classes and organizations are back in full swing and sometimes I have to remind myself to simply breathe and take a moment to relax. My days have been full of a packed class schedule, countless amounts of meetings, work, and not very much down time. Now don't get me wrong, I am not complaining at all. I definitely love to be busy, especially when involved with the great classes and organizations I am fortunate to be a part of today. But sometimes it does get quite overwhelming when looking at a three page to-do list, and that is why I could not be more grateful for the words of wisdom which were presented by Dr. Elmore.

Dr. Elmore has a series of books with Habitudes, which are images that form leadership habits and attitudes. These really powerful images are often common scenes we would experience in our life, which makes them easily relatable and memorable. These images include guardrails, coffee cups, glaciers, and train tracks. All symbolize such great lessons, but it was the picture of the starving baker that really stood out to me. Take a look at the picture that was shown to us below.

Habitude: The Starving Baker

Dr. Elmore then described the scene of this baker. This baker was new to town and was by far the best baker anyone had ever had baked goods from. His bagels and doughnuts were absolutely delicious. The line was always super long, no matter what time of day you went to check it out. Finally you give in and wait in line so you can see what this bakery is all about. You finally get your bagel and it is absolutely delicious. It was worth the wait. However, you realize something different when eating your bagel. You notice the baker is really thin, looks absolutely exhausted and malnourished, and looks as though he has no energy to keep baking, even though he truly loves what he does for living. This baker was starving.

You see, this baker was so busy feeding/serving others and keeping everyone else happy that he wasn't able to take some time to feed and serve himself. He thought he would be okay, but he was slowly starting to lose love for what he was doing because he was just hungry and tired. This baker forgot to feed the most important person first- himself. 

Just like when the airplane attendant tells you to secure your mask before securing anyone else's, it is not to be selfish or self-absorbed. It is because we are not able to help others unless we save ourselves first. 

This can apply to so many scenarios in every day life. In life, especially college, it is so easy to get into the swing of things that you forget to take a few moments to feed (either literally or figuratively) yourself. K-State has over 450 organizations, all with such greater purposes, that it truly is difficult to narrow your involvement down to what can fit in one week. I have joined so many organizations that I am absolutely passionate about to the point that I have meetings on a daily basis. And I am so glad I did, because I am serving organizations greater and larger than myself. 

And yes, it gets overwhelming and tiring (just like when the baker starts to lose his love of baking because of hunger). Not because we hate it, but because we forgot to feed ourselves first. 

So this week when I had 2 tests and a quiz, 3 interviews, a trip to the state capitol, lots of classes and meetings, and all the little stuff in-between it would have been really easy to just breakdown from exhaustion, or in the baker's case, hunger. But remembering this starving baker kept me strong. Rather than just pushing though like normal, I took some time to myself. Blogging, pinterest-ing, life conversations with great friends, and laughing are quite possibly my favorite ways to "feed" myself. It allows me to remember my passions and love for the organizations I serve and the major I am studying. 

It is easy to get carried away with life, so when you feel like you are about to lose it, remember this starving baker. Take a moment and feed yourself. It really does make such a difference on the outlook of your crazy schedule. 

Thank you to Dr. Elmore, Growing Leaders and K-State Blue Key for such a beneficial and inspiring leadership lecture. This is a lecture I will definitely never forget about.

Living a life of purple, passion, progress & purpose,

Kaitlyn Alanis