Five years ago, I decided to stop living my life “on the surface”.
Looking back, I can’t be sure exactly when the problem started. My routines were slipping. My sleep was inconsistent. I stopped exercising. And I worked nearly nonstop. My downtime was spent either sleeping or mindlessly scrolling on social media.
This was not a very good place to be, physically, mentally, or as I had come to realize, emotionally. And then, my health deteriorated, quite suddenly, it seemed.
Don’t get me wrong; my life is good. In fact, I often tell people I live “a charmed life”. While it may have come across as an empty platitude, at my core, it’s an idea I never really stopped believing to be true.
The confluence of factors all seemed to culminate in a series of unexpected surgeries. These were based on a serious medical condition from my youth that had all but gone dormant in adulthood. As anyone can attest, I’d say how I had “a good 30 year run” only to have the walls for my past abruptly cave in on my life.
After five years of illness, uncertainty and frustration, my moment had arrived.
So I decided to do something about it. I decided to take measures towards NOT living a superficial life, committing to a life of meaning and a life worth living.
There was work to do ahead, I knew this. With my vision set on being more present in my every day life, at home and work and in-between, there were some significant decisions ahead, starting with my commitments. After several months of deep thought and reflection, I had arrived at my commitments.
My personal commitments had become:
1. Read and Write. Every day.
2. Sweat. Every day.
3. Breathe. Every day.
4. Connect. Every day.
5. Pause. Every day.
And my professional focus (all tying to collective efficacy and culture) became:
Communication
Collaboration
Learning
Leadership
Relationships
As I reflect on my daily growth, I am also committed to sharing my improvements, my setbacks, and my strides on this road to improvement. While not easy, it is undoubtedly making me a better person for those around me. I look forward to the journey continuing and towards sharing what I am learning…about myself and life.