I try to make these posts as practical as possible. After all, you’re probably not interested in my philosophy on life and work. But every once in a while, I come across an insight worth sharing that doesn’t consist of four or five steps or strategies. This is one of those.
Novelist Tom Robbins once observed that, “True stability results when presumed order and presumed disorder are balanced. A truly stable system expects the unexpected, is prepared to be disrupted, and waits to be transformed,” he said. In other words, life happens. How you respond makes all the difference.
I blasted into 2023 with all kinds of great plans for what I was going to accomplish, the places I was going to travel and people I was going to see. But then there was the foot surgery and several unexpected challenges I didn’t anticipate and here we are in October. Being someone who likes to achieve what I set out to do, this was maddening as I watched the weeks slip away.
If you have been suffering from some form of burnout, chances are you’ve experienced some of the same emotions. Like burnout, I did not see it coming. It wasn’t like someone sent me an email listing the challenges that were going to occur and the dates they would commence. These can creep up on you and accumulate until you can feel mired in sand. You know you can move forward, but at nowhere near the pace you desire.
When this happens, you’re left with two choices. You can wallow in it or you can change your mindset. As I have said countless times, burnout is a story you tell yourself. Now, I’ll admit that there is no flipping a switch to make this adjustment. But the journey has to begin someplace.
When I came across Robbin’s insight, it kind of snapped me back to reality. After all, I’m the guy who wrote a book on burnout. For me, the key insight in his observation is “A truly stable system expects the unexpected, is prepared to be disrupted, and waits to be transformed.” Put another way, Proverbs 16 says in essence that if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.
When I reached this point, I made a list of all the challenges that were distracting me from what I desired. There were seven. I sat down and wrote out what would have to happen for each one to be overcome or eliminated. In doing so, I put my challenges in perspective. I am very blessed. If these were the worst things to happen to me this year, I could be in a lot worse shape. Over the past few months five of the seven have been resolved and one will be in December. Recovery from the foot surgery will last into 2024.
So, what’s the magic here? Presuming there will be disorder allows you to keep things in perspective and take more care thinking about how much you can accomplish. Besides, the best decision makers I know enjoy the ride even if they don’t get everything done. How about you?