Call Your Parents: J.K. Simmons' Advice on Showing Up

A few things rang true for me this week amidst the craziness of work and life. They were tips from two very savvy people - my good friend, Jennifer Chauhan, owner of Project Write Now and actor, J.K. Simmons.

For me, the themes basically said the same - show up.

J.K. Simmons most eloquently stated this to his children and the rest of the world during his Oscar acceptance speech (for his best supporting role in Whiplash) when he recommended calling instead of texting or email. His message was that he wants us all to call our parents.

This is part of J.K. Simmon's Oscar speech last night:

"And if I may, call your mom, everybody. I’ve told this [to], like, a billion people, or so. Call your mom, call your dad. If you’re lucky enough to have a parent or two alive on this planet, call ‘em. Don’t text. Don’t email. Call them on the phone. Tell ‘em you love ‘em, and thank them, and listen to them for as long as they want to talk to you. Thank you. And thank you, Mom and Dad."

Quite simply, he wanted to recommend to the kids of the world to actually interact with their parents instead of talking (or texting) AT them.

I can virtually see all the parents of the world nodding in unison right now.

My friend, Jen, spoke about the same thing when we were having our bi-weekly girlfriend to girlfriend talk about kids, working moms and the challenges we face. Very succinctly she passed along her words of wisdom that were passed along to her as she stated, "Patti, just show up. That's what they want."

It was at that exact moment when I saw a parallel between the world of parents and children. We all just want the other to make an effort, show interest and just show up.

We want to feel listened to and valued.

In a world that tends to talk at you via text, email, Facebook inbox and Tweet, what seems to be getting lost along the way is a genuine interest in being there for the other person - no agenda required.

Whether it's via personal relationships or business ones, I think society is generally craving interaction based on the present moment with active listening and back and forth conversation.

Just like the old times.

As human beings, we are hard-wired to want to be part of communities - face to face communities - not face to computer screen, not face to iPhone, not face to Gmail.

When we do this, we miss seeing our kids smiles, hearing their voices, their inflections, their laughter, their voice that may be quivering due to a bad break-up or job loss.

We miss the EMOTION that comes from listening to each other - not typing to each other.

Unfortunately, we all have reasons not to show up - whether we are stressed about work, our personal life may have its challenges or, simply put, we are just downright tired. Whatever the reason is, you will find that making the extra effort to make the call or schedule a face to face visit will give you more energy than a shot of espresso. I guarantee it.

The reward is so much greater than the effort. Nothing replaces conversation.

I love that J.K Simmons honored his family in his speech and gave us all some homework in the meantime that doesn't require a key board but a voice.

Use those voices today.

Tell your kids you love them. Call your mom and thank her for all the cool things she has done for you. Reach out to a colleague and take them out to lunch.

SHOW UP.

Let's start talking and listening to each other. In real time.This pic was taken almost 19 years ago. Rest assured I will be calling this college kid today. I want to hear his voice. :)

About Patricia Phelan Clapp

As a digital communications and online branding consultant, I assist various businesses and corporations to creatively market their brand online while continually focusing on overall business goals and target audience. My passion is to combine my experience teaching as an adjunct college professor, writer, entrepreneur and marketing with my love of online media.

Simply put, I help my clients to tell their story to build an online referral network in a unique and creative manner to find new opportunities.

Feel free to send me an inbox for more information. I would love to talk to you about how to leverage your online branding campaign. For more information, please contact Patti at [email protected].

Coverphoto via morguefile.