“I wish I could show you, when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing light of your own being.” ~ Hafiz of Shiraz

A story from my early adulthood:

Someone I loved, one of the first young men I had felt intensely about, had broken up with me in a rather spectacular and dramatic (to me) way. Whether or not his delivery was spectacular and dramatic, the result was that I was spectacularly and dramatically devastated. I was even more devastated when my mom said, "it doesn't matter."

Being a mom myself now, I have a different perspective on where she was coming from. She knew that it was likely that 30 years later I would look back on the incident as less spectacular and dramatic than it was at the time. (For the record, he and I are the best of friends today.) The problem was: the sequence of events may not have mattered for the long term but at that moment, splayed out on her bed in hysterics, the immediate issue was that I felt that <strong>I did not matter</strong>.
<h3>We All Want to Know We Matter</h3>
Cheryl Rice, creator of the <a href="https://youmattermarathon.com/" target="_blank">You Matter Marathon</a>, has discovered through personal experience that there is magic in connecting with friends, family, and strangers by simply sharing one card stating two words: YOU MATTER. This brief video demonstrates her vision.

https://youtu.be/lkORrO-I8gk

Cheryl has created the You Matter Marathon, during which people all around the globe will each commit to distributing one "You Matter" card each day in November. The current participant count is up to 6000 people in 26 countries sharing 100,000+ cards.
<h3>The Lead Change Community Discusses How to Spread the You Matter Message</h3>
I asked around among friends, colleagues, strangers, and anyone with an opinion to find out what makes them feel they matter, or how they like to share a "you matter" message with those in their lives.

Hugs and other gestures of reassurance were popular. "Spending time together" also garnered a vote. And as we now know from this post, another option is giving someone a "You Matter" card.
<h3>More Thoughts On Mattering</h3>
I looked back at the writing of our Lead Change community contributors and a few passages stood out.

In his post, <a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/rewards-and-recognition-done-right/" target="_blank">Rewards and Recognition Done Right</a>, <a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/author/scott-mautz/" target="_blank">Scott Mautz</a> reminded: "Odds are you will never hear people complaining that they are receiving too much recognition."

<em>I am positive the two words and nine letters that make up the phrase "You Matter" are not too much recognition!</em>

In <a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/creating-a-chain-reaction-of-goodness/" target="_blank">Creating a Chain Reaction of Goodness</a>, a post exploring instances when reaching out can be harder than walking away, <a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/author/jane-perdue/" target="_blank">Jane Perdue</a> wrote, "Here’s to replacing my wagging finger with grace, aiming for a reaction chain of goodness."

<em>We would all do well to calm down our wagging fingers and be catalysts for simultaneous chains of goodness during the month of November.</em>

<a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/instigators/cheryl-bachelder/" target="_blank">Cheryl Bachelder</a>, CEO of Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen, wrote of a <a href="http://cherylbachelder.com/servant-leadership/leaders-stop-look-celebrate/" target="_blank">visit she and her leadership team made to new restaurants in Indianapolis</a>. She described the happy tears in employees' eyes as they were recognized for various achievements such as "keeping the dining room sparkling." She shared, "recognizing people’s contributions is a way to tell them that you care."

<em>People need to know bosses (and others) care. It makes them want to keep contributing and doing their highest quality work.</em>
<h3>To Get Involved in the You Matter Marathon</h3>
<ul>
 	<li>Sign up by clicking <a href="https://youmattermarathon.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.</li>
 	<li>Follow the You Matter Marathon via creator Cheryl Rice on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/RiceOnLife" target="_blank">here</a>.</li>
 	<li>Follow the You Matter Marathon via creator Cheryl Rice on Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/yourvoiceyourvision/?fref=ts" target="_blank">here</a>.</li>
 	<li>Read more about the You Matter Marathon from Weaving Influence <a href="http://weavinginfluence.com/inspiration/featured-on-friday-youmatter-marathon/" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://weavinginfluence.com/inspiration/nine-letters-two-words-one-transforming-moment/" target="_blank">here</a>.</li>
</ul>
<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-31582" src="http://leadchangegroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/youmattermarathon_share_01.png" alt="youmattermarathon_share_01" width="440" height="220" />

Note: I loved <a href="http://tinybuddha.com/blog/7-things-realize-think-dont-matter/" target="_blank"> 7 Things to Realize When You Think You Don't Matter</a> from <a href="http://tinybuddha.com/" target="_blank">Tiny Buddha</a>. It helped me frame my thinking and its opening quote seemed perfect for this post too.