Dei, schedule time for chaos.
Dei,
When I first came up with the idea for #DeisOfOurLives, I was not writing/creating on a regular basis. Regular is relative, yes. But I exist in a world that recommends I write every single day and I was struggling to meet the 10% mark. So, each Sunday I showed up and wrote a microscopic thing in this space. Over time, the habit-building experiment evolved into a concern:
am I building the muscle to write more often OR have I accidentally built the muscle to write in a rush for an “impossibly” tight deadline?
It wasn’t planned. Unconsciously, I started writing my newsletter later and later each week. Eventually, I crammed the required writing into the final 90 minutes of Sunday. This behaviour transferred seamlessly into other areas of my life. I would submit applications seconds before the window closed and click into Zoom meetings at the .59 point. Tired eyes made room for more typos and yawning while typing at 11.45pm forced me to postpone ideas, indefinitely.
Quietly, my thrilled brain became more enthusiastic about shrinking the timeline for the task instead of stretching out the task to comfortably fit the time given.
I have been running the wrong race, and I’ve accidentally gotten better at it.
Breaking this routine is where my mind is at. I welcome any and all suggestions on how to rewire myself, to write instead of chase. Till then, I’m going to make an effort to hit Send before 11pm.
May the last piece be on the shelf, waiting for you,
Melizarani
On repeat this week
“Learning is actually the pre-work. It is not the work.
You’re actually going to have to do the work.”
Joe Holder is one of my favourite people to follow closely. In this lecture, he generously shares a combination of his and the late designer Virgil Abloh’s ideas on how to sustain effort, to get you to where you need to go.
My father said
“Thank you for trying. I know you are trying your best and everyone has their threshold.”