I often go through periods of contraction and expansion.
In the last few weeks, I chose expansion.
Admittedly, it was an odd time to choose expansion. My plate, if I’d looked at it as objectively as humanly possible, I would have decided that it was already full. Or, at the very least, I would have recognized that my energy levels were starting to wane, and that expanding at this time was sure to invite trouble.
Now, there could be a rather obvious lesson here, that expansion is bad, and contraction is good.
But that’s not the way I see it. Good or bad can apply to specific situations – games, business metrics, legal matters – situations where measurements are precise, and they mean something.
There are plenty of situations in life that aren’t subject to the simplistic logic of good or bad.
Publishing daily, for example, is not good or bad. It could be tied to business metrics, but every strategy has its pros and cons.
What I’m seeing for myself is that while I want to continue to expand as a leader, I want to contract my project load. Simplify. Create more focus.
Starting another podcast is the perfect example. I originally got into it to create more variety in my daily blogging efforts. But I’m already starting to see that it’s not keeping my life easy or streamlined at all. It’s taking up a lot of time and energy.
There are times to expand. Times to contract. And there are different areas of life to look at – different levers to adjust.
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