Work Session 5: Do That Thing
It’s that time again! Time for a daily work session. I want to get my writer’s muscles going! I want them to grow and develop. Which, just like anything else takes practice and discipline.
Dear reader, what are you currently working on? Which “muscles” are you developing? Take a moment and reflect upon your day. This can be a powerful and sometimes sobering exercise.
When I first started my practice of writing a daily reflection I quickly realized that I wasn’t really working towards anything at all. I found that a lot of my days I was just kind of existing.
It was almost as if I did everything that I was told I needed to do to be happy and I still wasn’t happy. I was just going through the motions. I was passing time by. Or maybe a better term would be letting time pass me by.
I had graduated college and had a great career. What more could a guy want? That’s what we’ve all been sold right? Go to school, get a degree and then get a good job and life will be easy peasy right? WRONG!
My life was almost like the movie “Groundhog Day”. Wake up, go to work, workout, eat dinner, maybe meet up with a few friends for drinks and then rinse and repeat. I was living quarter to quarter as an Account Executive. Every day was metric based.
That’s where the daily reflections became sobering. After doing them for a while I realized that I wasn’t really doing anything that I actually enjoyed. I wasn’t working towards anything besides making more money. My work was meaningless. Why do I care if some billion dollar company makes even more money while there are people going bankrupt because they have medical bills to pay?
Going out and partying with my “tech bros” allowed me to numb the feelings of emptiness for a while, but it wasn’t enough.
I knew deep down that there was more to life than climbing some corporate ladder or making a boat load of money. I just didn’t know what. In all honestly, I would be lying to you if I told you I have the answers… I don’t.
I do know one thing for sure though.. discipline and some sort of daily practice helps.
Whether it’s writing, drawing, singing, underwater basket weaving, I don’t care what it is. Just something you can do for fifteen minutes a day. Every single day. It doesn’t have to be something you necessarily love. Just something you can consistently do. I personally had no idea what I loved and I still don’t really know what I love.
That’s where my practice of writing kicks in. I know that it will help me discover what I do love. The thing I can write about with my heart aflame will eventually become clear to me. I still haven’t discovered what I love to write about, but I can at least practice writing. It helps me gain clarity. It keeps me present in the moment.
Now dear reader, let me ask you this…what helps you gain clarity? What helps you stay present? Do that thing. Everyday for at least 15 minutes. It will change your life(eventually).