What will be the most important thing you will do today? (We may not know until the day has ended.)
I asked this question at a Meaning of Life class for adults years ago and it was interesting what people said:
- Read my child a bedtime story.
- Cleared out my Inbox.
- Cooked a healthy dinner.
- Negotiated a contract.
- Wrote a bunch of Thank You notes. (Who was that person?)
- Finished planning for a conference.
At the end of the day, I try to name one thing that tranformed me or my Presbytery (where I work.) I’m pretty good at naming the transformations at work. Not so great at self-transformation, but trying to focus on this a bit more.
The best use of my time at work is culture-shifting work:
- A congregation realized that the Presbytery indeed wants them to thrive.
- Relationships between congregations are bolstered.
- Another pastor gets our new organizational structure.
- Connections were made between people, congregations, community organizations.
I’m trying to shift my personal culture as well:
- Read more novels. (Note: The Testaments is excellent.)
- Write more Thank You notes – not because I have to but because I want to.
- Exercise way more.
- Eat less sugar. (This would be a huge genetic shift.)
- Stop working so much.
That last one is the trickiest. With HH still living several states away it’s so tempting to work All The Time. The truth is that I don’t have to prove myself at this point in my life (although I still try to do that.) How about you?
I can tell you all day long that you are worthy of relaxation and staring-into-space time. But many of us work to show how hard we are working – even if our calendars are filled with activities with little impact.
What’s the most important thing you will do today? I hope it will be transformative and not just for your office/workplace.
Image of one of my favorite places to stare into space.
Excellent reflection, Jan. I would just add that some of us work many hours more than we would like because we need to make the ends come a bit closer to meeting. Economic challenges take a toll on many workers.
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You are totally right. Those of us who have one full time salaried job are extremely privileged.
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