Every day, during Elul, the Hebrew month leading up to Rosh Hashanah, we blow the shofar. The special cry calls out to each one of us as we prepare for the New Year. Last week, for the first time, the shofar was blown at the New York Stock Exchange by Jay L. Schottenstein, the CEO and Chairman of American Eagle.
In celebration of American Eagle’s 30 years of being publicly traded, the CEO was asked to ring the traditional opening bell for the stock exchange. Accompanied by his son Jeffrey, Jay announced that since this is the month of Elul, he blew the shofar on the trading floor in addition to ringing the bell.
Schottenstein sent out a much-needed wake up call for Jewish pride and faith across the world. As we sit down at our holiday tables this Rosh Hashanah, let’s use the precious time we have with our families to reflect on our own wake up calls and goals. Here are six questions to discuss with your families on the Jewish New Year.
- What do you want to do more of this year and what do you want to do less of? Think about what made you feel alive and connected this past year. Reflect upon which parts of your life have felt draining and like a waste of time. Go around the table and have each family say at least one activity they want to add to their lives this year and one activity they would like to subtract.
- What are you grateful for this past year and what are you looking forward to in the coming year? After answering this question, go around the table and have each member of the family tell each person why they are grateful to have them in their lives. Then go around again and have each person say one thing they are looking forward to doing as a family in the coming year.
- What are you living for? Reflect on what your current purpose and mission is in life. What are you passionate about? What gives your life meaning and direction? If you’re not sure what your purpose is, ask your family members what they think motivates you and matters to you in your life. Sometimes others can see a passion of ours that we may have put aside but that still matters to us. Another way to ask this question is: What would you do each day if you had all the time and money you needed?
- Did you have any personal wake-up calls this year? Is there something specific that happened that deeply transformed your perspective on life? What did you have to unlearn this past year? Go around the table and reflect on something you believed last year that you no longer believe?
- What are you most proud of in the past year? What was the best thing that happened to you? Go around the table and reflect on what you have done that was meaningful. How have you helped others? What have you done this past year that aligns with your mission and purpose in life?
- What relationships do you want to improve in the new year? Which friends or family members do you want to reconnect with? Which connections do you want to strengthen? The quality of our lives depends on the quality of our connections. How can you prioritize the relationships in your life in the coming year?
As the cry of the shofar echoes across the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, take the time to heed its call and think about what matters most to you in life and what changes you want to commit to this new year.
Unsafe at MIT
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