Photo of outdoor installation at the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art, artist unknown

Photo of outdoor installation at the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art, artist unknown

These past few weeks the packed schedule with work, my business and all the other daily life things has me dragging. When you are moving from one thing to the next, sometimes you get fatigued, worn out and little by little you forget why you are doing what you are doing. When this is the case, and you’ve put a lot on your plate it can feel like you are being dragged behind a running horse (even if it is a beautiful horse, running in the direction of your dream).

Early last week I realized that I had lost the focus on why I am at my day job, why I leave work and begin working on my business. I noticed myself just going through the motions while the fatigue built up. This feeling only got heavier when I thought about all that needed to get done between now and the holidays. I realized I had two choices, get my attitude back on track or move something off my plate. I looked at my plate and everything was important and meaningful for my path:

1. A great day job where I get to learn super valuable management and proposal writing skills with a smart, supportive and fun team where I work hard but don’t take work home

2. My business with a very generous and talented group of collaborators

3. Other commitments like a life-changing women’s group and art class

4. Normal life stuff like eating healthy meals and getting exercise

When it was clear that it was all supposed to be there, I decided I needed to reboot. I got up early on Friday and sat down for some free form writing to focus on how each thing I am doing contributes to my dream. And it helped a lot. A few examples:

My business: Make apparel to women’s measurements to help them embody their strength to transform themselves and the world.  Use professional women’s clothing as a tool to help women love and accept their bodies, their gifts and their power. Reform our relationship with apparel to connect ourselves to the people who make it, to bridge political and geographic divides, and to reconnect to the planet that provides the raw materials that form the garments we wear. Lastly, to use this dream to demonstrate the magic of dreams. The power of a dream and our limitless inner strength to transform ourselves and the world around us to one of unity, peace, balance and love.

My day job: Learn all the nuts and bolts it takes to build our dreams in the real world: organization, management, money, proposals, communication, what it takes to successfully build a complex business. *The message here was clear: This is how you will learn to effectively collaborate to build your big dream and make it as expansive and powerful as it is capable of being. 

My women’s group: Reminds me throughout the day that there is magic behind it all. I am not alone. I am not working alone. I am supported and I am exactly where I need to be. This commitment also means making time to support other women on their journey, but the magic it creates is extraordinary. It is what weaves each piece of the puzzle together.

So if you too are looking out at a busy holiday season, feeling fatigued and wondering how you’ll get through it all, take a moment to refocus and reorient yourself. It is so important to keep what moves us front and center and not to let it get pushed out by fatigue or our well-worn routines. Our capacity is so far beyond what we know. I believe in you. I believe in your dream.

Let the love and magic take the lead and trust that you are capable of everything else that follows.

Go, fight, win.

1 Comment

  1. Hi Reid, Well said. Revisiting your priorities and seeing how important each is to you led you to an important decision (to reboot) and inspires me to realize how each of my (essential and few) commitments enriches my life and well-being. Thank you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *