Save Yourself Some Time by Walking Away
Are you seeing the forest for the trees?
Sometimes things are so in front of your face that they could bite you if they were lions or tigers.
So why do we miss seeing the obvious? Why did I miss seeing the obvious? Is it masochism? Do I really want to suffer? Well, of course not. Silly and dumb, lol. Sometimes things are too obvious. We figure it can't be that easy. Guess what?
It's one of the great mysteries of life, why we allow pain and frustration by beating our heads against the wall, when the solution is right in front of our eyes. We're just up too close.
It took my 9 year old nephew to set me straight yesterday. The freshness and innocence of children is often disarming, and right on target.
My sister has been telling me the same thing for a year. One of my best friends has been pelting me with this realization.
I didn't hear them. It took my nine year old nephew to get through to me.
I was wasting my time and energy on something that had an iffy outcome. If it's not working after considerable time and effort, change direction or let it go. If it's not working, then maybe you are going in the wrong direction.
It's OK. I forgive myself. We're all human. We have to make mistakes. That's part of it. If you don't make mistakes, that means you're not exploring possibilities. Just bear in mind, we get blind spots when we're up too close.
That's why no matter how committed one is, it's important to step away from projects at intervals in order to stay objective and keep everything in proper perspective. You have to be brutally honest with yourself all the time.
Save time by walking away. You're not being lazy or disorganized. You're being time efficient and very practical. That's the creative process. You can't force anything.
Anyway, an idea has to be sound from the beginning. A building needs a strong foundation, or else the structure will collapse.
You'll know when you have to withdraw your attention and halt action in order to clear your mind.
It's just like your GPS, when it says "recalculating".
Take a breather, recalculate, then get back into action.
Thanks Again
I actually had one of these humbling experiences with a niece of mine this past Christmas.
That's the one thing that I love about children, they are honest about their opinions without having any motives behind them.
I hope that you had a great holiday season, and that your new year is great too!
Cheers,
Jason