Note: this post is the third of a 4-part series. If you missed the last two, you can catch up on Part One and Part Two.
Boss No. 3
My third boss managed me in the new company I moved to (thanks to this cheeky cover letter). It wasn’t a long stint, just under a year. But from her I learned two very important life lessons.
Lesson No. 4
Not so much a lesson as something she repeatedly suggest I start doing. And thanks to her genuine persistence, I did. And it changed my life.
Meditation.
I don’t know if you meditate, and I’ve certainly had conversations with many people who don’t get meditation. Hell, I was one of those people.
But within a few days of beginning meditating, I noticed a seismic shift in myself.
I’m not going to go into detail on what the shift was, because I wrote about it a couple of weeks ago, and I don’t want you to get bored. If you missed that post, check it out here.
It’s been over a year, and I still meditate almost every day. Usually ten minutes, but occasionally twenty.
I love it. It’s the time in my day where I just stop and re-charge. And sometimes when I skip a session, I actually miss it.
Meditation has helped me slow down, improved my focus, made me more patient and aware of the fleetingness of emotions. It’s grounded me.
In short, it’s transformed me into a far better version of myself than I was, both for me and for the people in my life.
Lesson No. 5
Energy management.
I used to think of productivity as managing my time well. But from my third manager, I learned that it’s not so much about managing time as managing energy.
I learned to not do things when I’m tired, to take breaks, to know my limits and expand them. Energy—unlike time—is after all limitless.
As someone with a full-time job plus a couple more side jobs, this is a skill that has come in handy.
I’ve also applied it in my personal life: Don’t have important conversations when I’m tired. Prioritise sleep. Eat well, exercise.
Just like meditation, energy management has improved my life for the better. If the former makes me a more balanced person, the latter makes me a more productive one.
Thank you, Joy, for teaching me these wonderful lessons and truly changing my life.
To be continued.
Until next Friday… Stay cool, stay safe, stay thoughtful,
Val