Appearance of Doing Good More Important Than Actually Doing Good?

I am speechless. The other day, I was listening to NPR and there was a quote to the effect that it's more important to give the appearance of doing the good than to actually do good.

Really?

I do lots of things in my life and in my business simply because I think they are the right things to do; not for any kind of recognition. I actually feel funny saying what they are because it sounds like bragging. Perhaps it is worth saying some of them?

I use a minimum of packaging. I certainly love to get a package with pretty tissue paper around it, but I resist the urge to do this because it's unnecessary waste. I hope my customers will appreciate the reasoning but I doubt it. And so I struggle with the little voice that says to buy tissue paper!

I save and reuse packaging supplies. It makes me go weak at the knees when I get a package that has so much extra packaging. I can't bear to toss it all. I have never needed to buy packaging supplies for my business! I simply save all the plastic bubble wrap and air bubble thingies and use them again. I have bins of this stuff.

I try to find a realtor closer to the customer. If I get an order from overseas, I feel quite strange causing a package to go around the world when there is already one sitting in that country, so I defer the sale. I know this probably sounds mad but I have to do what is right for me. No customer has ever said, "Good for you!" but that's okay. I can sleep at night.

If a customer accidentally misses the place where they could have paid $15 instead of $45 for international shipping, I refund the difference. They may never buy from me again since I mainly ship one product overseas and it is not one you'd buy again, but I'd feel bad taking the extra profit and knowing they paid that much to ship such a tiny package.

Would you like a "slouch"?

Sometimes, when I'm on the phone with a customer, my tongue gets ahead of me. Oh, who am I kidding. Sometimes my tongue just gets tied in a knot. Like the other day while my husband was driving and I started to say "Slow down!" but then quickly had to turn it into "Stop!" because of an animal darting into the road. Unfortunately, what I actually shouted, much to everyone's amusement, was "SLOP!!!!"

So the other day, I asked a customer if she was drawn to "slings and pouches". Only I didn't say that. What I actually asked her about was "Slouches". Then I cracked up. Oh poor woman. She didn't get the joke at first and it took me a sec to compose myself and explain.

Babywearing Conference is over!

Well! Sponsor and Teach and Exhibit, oh my! Not to mention extras like donating baby carriers, a diaper bag, and a Lose Your Mummy Tummy Splint & DVD to help raise funds and modeling two carriers in the Fashion show!

I didn't realize that doing all that would take every waking moment and every ounce of energy plus some. I returned from the adventure with a deficit that took a good two weeks to make up for! I am not cut out for exhibiting, that is for sure.

Well that and I worked around the clock for months to get ready for the conference. I loved all that. If I ever have a booth again, someone else will run it! I didn't realize how slow it would be. The last day was hopping and that was great and literally flew by. But "hurry up and wait" just isn't my cup of tea.