I spoke to a client last week who was overwhelmed at the thought of Thanksgiving this year. She usually hosts family from both sides—with more than thirty people over! But this year, it’s just going to be her partner and two kids.
She has no second thoughts about not having family over. While it’s hard, she knows it’s the best option in a difficult situation. So what’s the problem?
Back in 2000 (what feels like a lifetime ago!) I did advance work on a presidential campaign. I moved out of my apartment, put everything in storage, and traveled full-time across the United States. I’d arrive in a new city every week—in advance of the candidate—to make sure the venue was ready for the thousands of people who’d show up.
My travel schedule was so intense that I got in the habit of pulling the phone book out of the hotel nightstand and putting it on the floor next to my bed—so when I woke up I could remember what city I was in.
On election day, I was a bundle of nerves. I kept replaying all the possible scenarios. What would happen if we won? What would happen if we lost?
By the time I got to the campaign headquarters I was spiraling, when I ran into my colleague Kimberly who was cool as a cucumber. I asked her, admittedly with a hint of judgement, “How can you be so calm?” Her response stays with me to this day:
“We can’t fast-forward to the result. We’ll find out who wins tonight. So why waste energy fretting about it?”
Like a lot of households right now, my family is online… a lot! Both my daughters are doing virtual school, and almost all my work is happening remotely. Fortunately, 98% of the time we don’t have any problems.
But last week we did.
Do you remember the 80s movie Gremlins? There were a bunch of rules to help keep these monsters under control, one of which was ‘never EVER feed them after midnight’. As you may recall, someone did and, in typical 80’s movie fashion, havoc ensued. While you might be able to stay sane through a midnight snack, we all have scheduling issues that can make our lives better or worse. [Read more…]
