May 6, 2020 — (Ha I bet I got you with that title!) I am flying high after yesterday’s Instagram live with Carole LeClair from Austin Creative Reuse. If you are not well-versed in my obsession with ACR, please read my blog post from May 1st for the full-on experience! Being able to share the missions of non-profits, especially here in Austin, TX, and therefore educate others as to how they can help if they so desire, fills me deeply to my core. And, dear reader, I don’t say that lightly!
So I turn around right now, looking you in the eye, and ask: “What fills you deeply to the core?”
STOP IT.
Right now you just judged yourself. You said, “I don’t know…I must suck” or, “Netflix, so I must suck” or, “I know EXACTLY what it is, but I never do it, so I suck”
Guess what? WE ALL SUCK.
It’s true. So now what?
It’s about sucking LESS. Just a little less.
And right now, in this “dumpster fire” of a time, (thank you to my husband for that image) so much SUCKS that we don’t even know what to do with it on a daily basis. Or an hourly basis. As a country, we are stewing in our own shizz.
I have an amazing friend (oh, I have so many amazing friends!!!!) that posted recently on FaceBook: “Has the US lost its mind??” (Message me if you want to know who that was) But I keep thinking about that simple, yet straightforward, hit-the-nail-on-the-head question.
It has. We have. We are so focused on the negative, or so easily led without being educated that people would ACTUALLY believe that you should inject disinfectant or bleach EVER??!??! Has Mr Yuck failed? Who remembers those stickers?? I suppose with the invention of cabinet child-proof locks people don’t use those anymore? Sad.
What it boils down to is a lack of informing oneself before spouting off to others. (I like to call it “talking out of one’s ass”) Come on: it’s not hard to do a little research. These days, it is so easy. Crazy easy. Too easy. Yet people do NOT do it. They parrot what others say and then lose own their point of view. Why we just hand over our brains to simply any joe-on-the-street I’ll never know…I am guilty of that at times, I fully admit it.
Here it is: take your own point of view. Stand up and own it. I’m not talking about a political demonstration, unless that is what fills your balloon, but just STAND UP and read before you speak. Be the one who speaks with authority because misinformation is what got us into this “dumpster fire” in the first place.
Be the one who does those things that fill your soul, because only YOU can give yourself that gift. Why would you hide that magic from yourself?? Eve Rodsky calls it “unicorn space” in her book Fair Play. I love that!
My amazing business coach, Jessica Butts, cleverly uses “boulders and beach balls” as a spot-on metaphor about how you live each day. I bet if you sat for 5 minutes and thought about your day yesterday, last week, last month and beyond, it wouldn’t be too hard to identify the things in your life that are like tossing a beach ball. Nor the things that are like trying to push a boulder up a hill.
I know you value your precious energy. Don’t you want to fill your balloon with more energy??
Grab on to that beach ball. Have you ever seen people playing with a beach ball that weren’t smiling and laughing and having an absolute blast?
Ok then. I would LOVE to hear some of your thoughts.
Email, DM, FB message, or comment with your beach balls, and even the boulders you are going to choose to stop pushing.
Hopefully we can start, just START, to douse the dumpster fire and rise out of the ashes.
Cheers! –ryan:)
PS I absolutely mean it. I want to hear from you. BEACH BALLS!
