As you walk down the fairway of life, you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round. – Ben Hogan
Part of my morning routine before heading to work each morning is to stop and look at the roses in the flower bed at the front of my house. I do this every morning. It’s a ritual.
My fascination with roses began decades ago, when, as a teenager, I worked at a garden center. Each winter, we built a large greenhouse on the property, and we spent those months preparing for spring. In the greenhouse, we potted roses by the thousands. Come spring, we were ready, and our customers would come from far and near to purchase our roses. As did I. It was then that my affection for roses began, and I’ve always maintained an abundance of them in our flower beds.
It seems like I have known the phrase “stop and smell the roses” for as long as I can remember. But I’ve never given much thought to the origin of the phrase.
It seems to be a fairly modern phrase. The core idea of stopping to appreciate life’s pleasures dates back centuries. The Latin phrase carpe diem, “seize the day”, or as the 17th-century poet Robert Herrick wrote: “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may…” conveys the idea of pausing on life’s journey.
The exact phrasing “stop and smell the roses” seems to have originated in the early to mid-twentieth century. Ironically enough, the phrase became popular in golf culture when professional golfer Walter Hagen was often associated with sentiments encouraging people to enjoy life beyond work.
Speaking of enjoying life beyond work, I don’t have to be the one to tell you how hectic life can be. It seems life is busier now for most than ever before. Which brings me back to my title question: Have you stopped to smell the roses? There’s nothing magical about my morning routine to observe the roses in the flower bed. But here are a few things I’ve learned.
Set the tone for your day with intentionality
The first decision of my day, walking out the door, is to take in something positive and beautiful. It’s an intentional act that focuses me on something I really admire and appreciate that brings me a small degree of happiness.
Regardless of what the day brings, I begin it with something no one can take from me. What about you? What are you intentional about that guards your peace of mind and sets the tone for your day? Or do you just take it as it comes?
Leadership Tip: The first decisions of your day will often set the tone for the rest of it. Choose wisely.
Don’t get distracted by the thorns
While working in the garden center, it was just part of the job to get cut by the thorns while potting the roses. Call it an occupational hazard.
In your daily leadership, you will deal with thorny situations from time to time. It comes with the territory. There may be times when you feel overwhelmed by the pressures of running your business and a myriad of other issues that cross your desk. But my pause each morning is not to admire the thorns, it’s to admire and appreciate what I see all around them.
Leadership Tip: We can’t choose what happens to us, but we can choose our response.
Pause with purpose
My morning routine works for me. It’s a deliberate pause. It forces me to hold off on the temptation to get in the car, fight the traffic, think about ten things on my mind that I need to do when I get there, etc. It’s a strategic pause.
As a leader, when you take time in your day to pause and take a few deep breaths, you can feel a reset. Regardless of how busy it can be, a pause with purpose can be refreshing.
Leadership Tip: When you embrace pausing during your day, you can gain fresh perspectives you might otherwise miss.
Have you stopped to smell the roses?
©2026 Doug Dickerson
