Dear Creative,
Have you been working hard lately? Are you exhausted? Close to burnout? Are you doing so much, but not seeing the fruits of your labour? Then, this message is for you.
"What is your plan for the future?"
Tired of hearing that question? You should be. You've probably been hearing it since you were two years old- it just comes in multiple variations. From such a tender age we ask children what they want to be, as if the young child is not just trying to learn how to count from 1-10.
What that then means for the child is that they already feel pressured to know their interests aims, and goals, even if they don't have a clue. This approach has now raised a whole generation of racers. You and I have both know some. People who are so anxious about time, that they just can't sit still. They hop from project to project, with successes here and there but never really making any lasting impact.
You see, these people are striving. Striving to do more.
BUT,
the catch is that doing more, doesn't equate to being more.
I had to learn this the hard way.
I've always had a keen interest in business. Right from early. So, if you ever want to hear countless stories about failure, then I'm your girl. I've had a number of different ventures in the past that have all failed. I've lost so much time and money trying to make things work, all because I wanted to look busy. One of my earliest businesses was a t-shirt line. I formed the business with a friend of mine at the time, and I pitched and secured start-up investment funding of £100- from my mum. I sorted out suppliers and behold the t-shirts materialised. My friend set up a website, and we waited for the sales to just come rolling in.
Nothing.
We didn't even sell a single one.
I gave up and moved on to my next venture. And so on, and so on. I experienced failure and then I just moved on. No time to pause, no time to reflect. That's what you do when you strive. You just want to be doing something, you just want to be seen as busy- but are you taking the time to reflect as you go? If you don't do that then how can you know the best direction to head in?
I did this for ages- just hopping from one thing to the other. I began to learn that this approach was not sustainable. And what was worse- I was burning out under all the pressure. I was looking at what others were achieving and using that as a yardstick for where I should be. I failed to focus on the real issue: why am I running?
This is why I am now a strong advocate of striding. When you stride, you go at a reasonable pace whereby you're still moving (i.e. making waves) but it is a lot more thought-out and carefully considered movement. What this would mean for you is that you would spend a lot less energy doing some really amazing stuff.
As an individual, do not be anxious to run. Those who rush are here for a good time, not a long time. STRIDE don't STRIVE.
Kind Regards,
#TalentManager (Twitter - @bolu_bello)