Experimenting with Being
In the last year or so, I have been struggling with the practical aspects of understanding being vs. doing. OK, I grapple with the being part. The doing is very clear to me as that has been my preferred mode for the last 20 years. To me, doing is being.
In the book Out of the Grind and Into the Flow by Alexis Pokorny Kahlow, she describes the concept of flow (i.e. being) which includes self-care, relationships, intuition, and joy.
The pandemic has brought tremendous change in all our lives in different shapes and degrees. At the beginning, when we were all setting up our home offices in closets, kitchens, and living rooms, and conquering the unknown for toilet paper, there was a lot of doing to adapt to the new circumstances.
Now that the novelty of having to adjust to the current reality has worn off, I am experiencing increased boredom, dissatisfaction, and low physical and mental energy. Furthermore, we are about nine weeks away from saying farewell to 2020. This is another factor impacting this sense of fatigue, and having to summon extra strength to make it to the finish line.
After so many changes since March due to the pandemic and other factors, I now decided to give the being a try. For the next 9 weeks, I will do less and be more. I have no idea how it will look like or how I will go about it. I will start experimenting and observing the results.
For the rest of 2020, I will continue, stop/decrease, or start/increase certain activities. Here is the list I have so far. What would you add?
I will continue
- working out
- eating healthy
- walking as frequently as weather permits
- spending quality time with the people I care about (in all channels)
- meditating and journaling
- giving my best at work (to the task at hand, my team, my colleagues)
I will stop or decrease
- reading my goals everyday
- looking for another job
- placing so much importance to tangible results
I will start or increase
- reading for pleasure or to learn vs. reading to check the box
- spending time in Nature
- safely and slowly meeting people I care about in person
- internalizing that being is as important as doing
- paying attention to the signals from my body
Great leaders realize that both being and doing are equally important and necessary for execution, innovation, and motivating others. They recognize when there is unbalance in themselves and take action to readjust. Amazing leaders motivate their teams to harmonize doing and being so they can also bring their best and whole selves to their jobs, families, and communities.
In the comments, share how you go about being vs. doing and/or your challenges to balance the two; I would love to know more. You can write your comments in English, Spanish, Portuguese, or French.
My mission is to help women transform their inner voice from critic to champion, so they can confidently realize and fulfill their potential achieving what they want most for themselves, their families, communities, organizations, and teams.