The Good Life - 07/19/2023 - Relaxing more at work
I’ve discovered a funny new superpower at work, a temporary, ephemeral force which has only recently emerged, and will be gone soon when no longer needed. Difficult work days have become less so when I simply remember that these hard days are numbered. Bringing this thought to mind during a challenging meeting is like spotting the finish line during a long footrace—a marathon, really—and feeling a pump of energy to make it through the last mile. The feeling is less like giving up than simply pulling back, withdrawing a bit to let the younger coworkers jostle and move to the fore, standing down while someone new presses forward to take my place. When this happens I literally feel myself lean back into my seat, my muscles easing while my mind calms, and a little smile emerges in my eyes and at both sides of my mouth—and then I begin to say less, letting others talk more, agreeing more readilly to their good ideas, prepared now to follow rather than lead the team, dropping back day by day—still working hard, but more in support than in the lead—until I soon find myself at the rear of the group and supporting them all from behind, cleaning up as we go, tying up loose ends, noting how they no longer really need me as much, my work being seemingly done—until one day, I’ll simply vanish into the woods as the team rounds a new project corner—and the work and the world simply carries on perfectly fine without me.
#GoingAlone #TrueLimitsAndOpportunity
The Good Life Meditation is my daily recitation and reminder of personal objectives and principles used in pursuit of a purposeful life in spite of a universe of seeming indifference. Learn more about The Good Life at my website GoingAlone.org or by reading my book Going Alone. And visit our Discord at: https://lnkd.in/gFgfGmY6
OBJECTIVES: 1. Be Always Ready to Die 2. Make Good Use of Time and Resources 3. Develop Good and Sound Life Principles 4. Cultivate Good Emotional Reactions 5. Perform Good Actions 6. Recognize True Limits and Opportunity 7. One Thing Slowly
PRINCIPLES: 1. Principle of War 2. Principle of Reason 3. Homunculus 4. Anchorhold 5. Home of Good and Evil 6. Principle of Purpose 7. Atomic Principle 8. Principle of Nature 9. The Pirate Ride 10. Principle of Maturity 11. Social Principle
12. Principle of Family 13. Public Speaking 14. Temperance 15. Life Will Not Go Well 16. The Horror Show 17. That Which Must Be Borne 18. The Feast of Offal 19. Distraction 20. Agency and The Great Indifference 21. The Best Seat in the House 22. The Restless Man 23. The Path of Wildness 24. The Great Life Adventure 25. The Risk of Avoiding Risk 26. Sin and Damnation 27. Complete Oblivion 28. The Season of Philosophy
29. Scriptwriting 30. Bullseye Aim 31. The Uphill Climb 32. Arena and Utility 33. Nothing IS enough 34. The Principle of Fun
#Stoic #Stoicism #StoicPhilosophy
My name is Kurt Bell.
You can learn more about The Good Life in my book Going Alone.
Be safe... But not too safe.