Intermission
If you look back at my blog, you will see that I am smack dab in the middle of a five part story. You will also see that I have not posted in 10 days, creating a resounding pause in the story’s flow.
Talk about online marketing and audience building blasphemy!
It’s particularly scandalous since the 5-part story is playing a crucial role in a small group I’ve been quietly enrolling into alongside the posts.
One would think I would feel some kind of urgency or moral responsibility to get. it. done. (Especially with the increasingly pervasive and pressurized hustle culture hanging over our social media feeds and email inboxes like a black cloud of smog.)
Alas, here I am. Not with part 4 of the story - which will eventually come. But with an important message from my own personal intermission.
Your life is not behind the screen you’re reading this on right now. Your life is away from it.
Please take the time to live it.
This is not one of those posts…
…where I state my points, share corresponding anecdotes, and tie everything up in a neat bow.
This is a simpler kind of post. A PSA. A pinch to make sure you are aware of the messaging that is running through your head.
Anyone who knows me knows that I am a (sometimes more successfully than others) recovering workaholic. I’m not saying log off forever. I’m not saying there aren’t opportunities to connect with people online. I’m not saying you don’t love your job.
I get it. I love my job.
I’m saying there is a world out there - yes even in this pandemic - that is likely aching for your attention. A world where interest and curiosity exists for the sake of interest and curiosity - not for the purpose of extending your reach or building your business or making more money.
How much time do you spend in that world?
Is that really enough?
For me, it wasn’t.
I’ll leave you with a list.
Here are some of the things I’ve been doing instead of writing Part 4 of my story. And while I do intend on eventually writing Part 4, I don’t intend on shrinking this list. I intend on expanding it. Fervently.
Reading. A lot. And not just business books - but fiction and poetry and classics that I pretended to read in high school.
Watching movies. Not as background noise, but purposefully. And live texting the person who recommended them with all of my reactions!
Learning how to cook a french omelette. It’s going better than I thought. But there is still a long way to go.
Decorating my home office. This has been a remarkable and honestly surprising improvement to my work life happiness.
Celebrating a the birth of a close friend’s new baby.
Going on long, long walks. Without music or podcasts playing in the background.
Daydreaming with friends about the future possibilities in life.
Connecting with old friends - slowly and one at a time. Just because.
Sitting in nature in silence and thinking. Lots of silence. Lots of thinking. Lots of nature. Lots of digesting.
The list goes on and on and gets even more mundane.
The result? My life has become instantly richer. Not because I’ve taken a vacation. Not because I’ve taken a retreat.
But because I’ve been mindful to not confuse the online world for my actual life.
(And for those of you who are wondering - my work has not suffered. So, let’s nip that fear voice right in the bud)
If you’re feeling fatigued, or burnt out, or dissatisfied, or stressed - I suggest you do the same. Turn off the computer. Go live your life. You might be surprised.
And please send me any omelette tips you have. They are welcome and appreciated.