It's hard to grapple with the fact that I am in my forties, and it still seems I have so much to learn. But I do believe that living our lives is essentially a path of discovery. A journey if you will, that will never end. And a discovery that I have made that helps with my time management, is the process of saying NO. Which leads to the ultimate life hack. Energy Management instead of time management. stay on tasks and activities that give me energy instead of draining my energy.
At the end of the day, I have found that I have moved away from the normal relaxation activities of the modern world, like Netflix or binge watching the next season of Ted Lasso... Although, I think if a new season of Ted Lasso came out, I would definitely binge watch it still. I am still human of course. But getting back to my relaxation activities. I have found that learning and creating is probably my default activity in terms of what gives me energy.
Which is why I am constantly looking to learn new technology, new applications. Learning to use artificial intelligence applications is one that has intrigued me. Learning about social media, marketing, branding.. Learning about improvements in senior health care. Learning about improving small business processes. And of course, my life long obsession with investing. Learning has been a constant energy booster in my life, and I'm just so blessed to learn more of that about me.
I've learned that small talk drains me. But I have learned that deep intellectual conversation has always been a big energy booster for me. Deep conversation in general is something that I am seem to always seek, which is why reading books, blogs, articles.. All of it is something that I am just realizing is what I should do more of, because it simply is where my energy is guiding me.
The fact that people pleasing is such a normalized process in our society, undermines the fact that we should always lean towards filling our own cups first by which we can pour more of ourselves and be a better contributor to society. It is this thinking that I have always had a hard time coming to grips with because it sounds so selfish. But the more I think about it, read about it.. there can be nothing more selfless than becoming the best version of yourself, so that this version is the version that we ultimately have been created to become. God did not want us to half of what we were meant to be, and the more I realize this, the more that I block out the noise of society and focus on being the best version of myself day in and day out.
This thinking is what ultimately has given me even more conviction to pursue avenues that would normally be through insane or crazy. The fact that a classically trained Chemical Engineer would venture out into the world of Finance, Sales, Insurance, business, entrepreneurship. I don't think I would have been able to do this without getting to know myself more and more each year that I exist here on earth. And this knowledge is why I continue to put more time in tasks and activities that truly give me the most energy.
One thing that I no longer apologize for, is the fact that I love to work. My work, in all aspects of it, gives me energy. The process itself is something that is internally motivating, even before I reach a goal... Actually, I once watched a video by Andrew Huberman, and it really reinforced the fact that I was on the right train of thinking. Because if we are able to make the process the reward itself, and not the goal as the reward, we ultimately have the best hack in motivation. Because we are no longer driven by the end goal, but the process of reaching that goal. Results don't matter as much because we are always in the process of becoming or achieving, and that in and of itself is the best motivator. A source of motivation that doesn't diminish because successful or not, the process is the process. And that is reward enough.
Maybe it's another reason why I love to run so much. I only wish I could still run like I used to back in the day. I could run like 5 miles every day, but because of my upper back disc degeneration, swimming or elliptical work is probably the closest I will get to that natural runner's high..
Anyway, this is my blog for the day. Doing activities or tasks that give us energy, instead of draining our energy. My goal is to write a little more than I have been. I miss it, it's another activity that brings me so much energy and joy. And frankly, I don't want to lose my ability to write. Whether the writing is good or not, I think the act of writing for me is another sanctuary that Im going to try to cultivate a little more in my own life. I hope to have this blog as a repository of my learnings and thoughts. You're more than welcome to join me on this journey of self discovery.
