Today was another Monday just like any other except for one thing. I didn't have a schedule. If you know me, you'd know that I'm not the type of person to just let my day "unfold" in front of me. I have been adjusting to life without a schedule, and to working from home. Life seems to be full of transitions lately, and my life without a time clock is one of the largest. I used to think that growing up meant a life of schedules, time clocks, accountability, bills, and all of those "things" that we all expect to come with "adulthood". I suppose if there is anything I should know about life it's that it is anything but expected.
Nothing about my life "plan" expected me to start my own company, with three fabulous partners, right out of college. Even more so, nothing said that 18 months later we would be selling the same company for all of the "right" business reasons...just not so much the successful kind. The humbling effects of this kind of experience cannot be put into words. Owning your own company means you can set your own schedule, and by that I mean you get to choose your ridiculously demanding schedule. Over the past several weeks I have been told that I am handling this "transition" with confidence and grace, and I blame video games. Yup, I mean that. I think I was watching Shark Tank when I heard "entrepreneurs today are from the era of video games. When something doesn't go as planned, they hit the reset button". It's very true if you ask me. If I sat here and complained about a situation, it won't fix it. If I cried about how things ended up, it wouldn't be fair the all of the time I spend learning, growing, and enjoying what I helped to build. I don't think anything ever goes EXACTLY to plan, and the best thing you can do from the way things end up "off-schedule" is to learn from them. Maybe by the end of it all we will figure out a better system that doesn't veer too far off of where we're trying to go.
I think a great example of this comes from how we choose to say good-bye. I'm not really talking about how we end a meeting, but how we end our lives. My aunt recently published a book called "I Could Never Say Goodbye", and it is the story of the death of my grandparents. Sometimes things sneak up on you, and sometimes you get to plan them out. Neither situation should mean you have any less grace or dignity, or should be anything less than celebrated. I know that might sound pretty somber, or even dark, but how can you appreciate everything you have experienced in life if you do not celebrate the end?
That can go for even a phase of life, like this one for me. It might be the end of one chapter, but it is an even bigger beginning for the next. If there is one thing true about the chapters of life it's that they continue to get better as you write them!
Until Next Time
Dabble
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Your insights are spot on! One of the hardest and most important lessons I learned in life was to "let go of holding on to letting go." Sounds like a riddle. Maybe it is. But it's true. You're way ahead of me Kate. Sometimes we must let go to free up our hands to grab hold of the next opportunity. You will go forward smarter, wiser, and with confidence gained from all you learned on your journey to now. Just wanted to let you know - I bow to you to honor your magnificence! Thanks for your honest sharing.
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