Your Permission Slip to Enjoy Life Outside of Work
Your Permission Slip to Enjoy Life Outside of Work
Stop Being So Hard on Yourself
Life isn’t as always fine and dandy as one would think—perception is everything.This holds true to my summer. About mid-way through May, I was primed for a breakthrough as I:
came off a monstrousspeech at Creative South
launched my Change Your Perspective Guide (which you can access for free)
recently eclipsed 30K on my Instagram
prepped for the start of my Perspective Podcast
was planning monthly Drink & Draws to build a local community
Your Permission Slip to Enjoy Life Outside of Work
From the outside looking in you would think I'm living the high life right?Again, perception is everything.I felt unstoppable—like a blazing locomotive moving full steam ahead when suddenly it all came to a screeching halt.As June hit, I’ve slumped into a massive funk and the wildness of summer brought me into a creative lull. That's why I want to share this with you because it's not always easy and social media accounts rarely depict what's someone's life is truly like.There’s been readers or on-lookers in the past saying American’s like me put too much pressure on ourselves to constantly be pushing forward instead of just being content with where we are in the present.Honestly, this does get to me. I’ve always been one to live my life on a strict time schedule and I believe in the value of showing up each day. I’m at my most productive when I live on a routine. I grew up believing that being busy made me look important, but I've learned that this isn't true.I’d rather be productive than busy.One of my biggest struggles is living in the moment. This summer my personal goal was to enjoy the moment and give myself permission to let off the gas pedal a bit.As the end of summer approaches, I can't help but feel that I let up on the gas too much.Motivation is hard to come byin this funk. I planned on launching a podcast by now and it feels like I let myself down because I got wrapped up in weddings, bachelor parties, anniversaries, birthdays, Pokemon Go and just catching up with friends in general. My blog posts and drawings all feel average in my mind too.The thought of feeling sorry for myself is at an all-time high and I can’t stand it. This summer was supposed to be a breakthrough by riding the momentum I built in the spring.How did I let this happen?Then moments like this when I’m letting my thoughts flow through writing, I realize that I have nothing to be ashamed of.I need to stop being so hard on myself and you should too.
Work Will Still Be There Tomorrow
I’m still young and work will still be there tomorrow and at the end of the summer. My goals haven’t changed, just the timeline when I will accomplish them. I have no doubt I will accomplish them, it’s already done in my mind and I’m awaiting reality to catch up.Although my productivity decreased and I’m not the machine I’ve been the past year from a business aspect, I realize it’s okay and I accept this. The memories and moments I had being in the moment far outweigh putting the focus on myself and my projects.I’ve reconnected with so many friends and family members that were temporarily brushed under the rug during my tunnel vision obsession of work.I’ve danced a ton, drank my fair share of booze, went on adventures with my wife, explored random parts of my city and met new friends while playing Pokemon (no shame in the game here).Sure I haven’t managed to hit a few of my big goals, but these were arbitrary deadlines I put on myself to stress out about. At the end of the day, it’s okay and it’s not affecting me or anyone else if things get pushed back….It’s okay. It’s okay to enjoy life outside of work.I still showed up each week and put out a blog post with a drawing. I’ve listened to plenty of podcasts and audiobooks. I still showed up even though the intensity isn’t at the all-time high.I’m giving myself a permission slip to enjoy the summer I’m having and I want to extend this permission slip to you.So what you’re not cranking out work at 100mph. Who cares if you took some time off to hang with friends and family.You’re human and you deserve to live a little and enjoy your life outside of work.Just know I’ve been enjoying mine and that I'll get back that killer mentality when things slow down.
Key Takeaways
It's better to be productive than be busy
Your work will still be there tomorrow
Let off the gas and enjoy life outside of work
It's okay to slip into a funk, it's normal
Find a way to respond instead of feeling sorry for yourself
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Do You Need a Visual Reminder?
Each week, I create a one-off drawing that serves as the face of my blog posts. My goal is to help you get through your everyday struggles as a creative and I'd like these drawings to serve as your daily visual reminder to keep pushing when things get tough.These visual reminders are a part of my Perspective-Collections series where you can own the original hand-drawn piece.This weeks drawing is available here or you can view the entire selection below.[button open_new_tab="true" color="accent-color" hover_text_color_override="#fff" size="large" url="https://perspective-collective.com/perspective-collections/" text="View Selection" color_override=""]