Put It Down…
Story time!
A professor stands in front of her class holding a glass of water. She asks, “How heavy do you think this is?”
Students call out answers. Four ounces. Six ounces. One says, "It's not heavy."
The professor says, “Are you sure? Here... hold it."
At first, the student doesn't flinch and rolls his eyes. But three minutes in, the glass starts to shake. At five... he grimaces and the class starts to chuckle.
The weight of the glass never changed.
What changed was how long it was held.
Damn... that's life, isn't it?
A lot of things feel heavy right now, and your cup may be shaking even as you read this. And honestly, we're gettin' it from all directions!
Wild politics
A long winter
Workloads that refuse to slow down
And... because tomorrow is Valentine’s Day (and thanks to Hallmark)... heart stuff might be in your face, too.
Grief from a breakup
Loneliness
Old wounds you keep revisiting
And we tell ourselves we have to hold it. Whatever it is.
But what sucks, is that in these moments so many people tell us to let go of things that feel heavy. They say, "Just let it go!"
But it's never that easy! If I let go, will it shatter? Will someone catch it? Obviously it's significant to me (for whatever reason) or I wouldn't be holding it in the first place!
But what if I told you, the answer isn't always letting go.
Often, you just need to PUT IT DOWN.
The good news is, when you've rested and you feel strong again, you can pick it back up. Sounds simple, right? But it's not simplistic.
It's so obvious once we allow ourselves the option, right? Or maybe not.
Here are TWO reasons I think we hold tight and DON'T put the heavy down.
One: We’re afraid that if we do, we’ll never pick it back up. I mean, we're holding on tight because the thing matters to us, right?
But friend, putting something down doesn’t mean you don’t care. Trust yourself a little!
It means you care enough to recharge so you can go the distance.
Two: We’re afraid someone else will pick it up and finish for us (or our competition will finish before us).
Maybe you’re working on something cutting-edge. An idea. A project. A business. Maybe it’s an AI product, and you know others are racing to launch first. You want your name on that patent, dammit!
But we're human! If we carry a heavy load for too long, we'll slow down... and maybe not finish at all.
And that's my two cents for today...
Choose SUSTAINABILITY over a shaky glass.
Pro Tip: If you're like me, and you enjoy a little symbolism, keep a glass on your desk. When you're holding too much in life, pick up that glass, and name the thing that feels so heavy. Then... set it down.
