The Power of Knowing

 by Jody Feldman

I was in 1st or 2nd grade when I stumbled upon a report from a parent/teacher conference. Even though it was somewhere in the open – probably sitting on my parents’ dresser, until they could file it will other schoolwork – I stealthily read it.

The generic evaluation list was annotated with the usual high marks along with comments, probably praising my reading skills, my cooperative nature, and my ability to listen (no one knew the extent of my daydreaming). It was one note, however, that I still remember to this day, a single sentence that forever changed my life. It said something like this: Jody is a natural leader, who doesn’t seem to know exactly how much the other children listen to and follow her. 

It was a shock to my system. Me? A leader? Shy people aren’t leaders.

I can’t say I truly believed it. For certain, I didn’t act on it, at least not deliberately. But knowing that an unbiased observer deemed it true – seeing those words in print – brought out a certain confidence that grew as I did.

Would I have run for office and joined leadership teams in junior high, high school, and college if my teacher hadn’t written that? Would I have served on executive boards in various organizations since? Impossible to know.

What I do know is this: A person will not remember random snapshots in time unless those moments make an impact. As people – writers, educators, parents, children, relatives, friends, of any age – we have the power by a word or a smile or even a nod to make an impact. Quite simply, the power of knowing can change lives.