The present is a gift, but it often feels like a window that reflects past experiences into what may come next.
For those of us who like to build, we can feel lazy if we’re not constantly evolving from things we’ve learned in the past while also actively planning for the future. While staying in the moment provides peace and limitless space to appreciate the entire spectrum of now, mashing this mindfulness with an ability to explore and create fresh things is healthy. It can also create a sense of anticipation.
Anticipation often arises as we try something new. Whether it be from the first day of school, a first date, booking travel, having a baby, or the unknowns in building a business, traversing apprehension is rewarded by experiential wisdom that comes from navigating the actions we take.
Sometimes anticipation can be confused with worrying. It’s different. Worrying is agreeing to be unhappy until the present delivers whatever originally concerned you. These feelings do have one thing in common: They are both focused on the future. That’s why anticipation shares an orbit with worrying. A key dissimilarity are the positive sides of anticipation.
One positive effect of anticipation is how it can help guide proper planning. Creating moments in a business that allow the team to feel anticipation can blend purpose, and over time this converts to a team with shared convictions. When a sustained team finds joy in their mission, progress is felt and the wild card of persistence is up for grabs.
Distractions are impossible to avoid, and agitation is hard to fend off during tough times, but the Canadian saying, “Keep your stick on the ice,” reminds us to chill, keep it simple, and be ready for anything. With our sticks on the ice, we embrace challenges, bend without breaking, push through the storm, and appreciate what makes good times great. Business potential awaits when we say yes to adventure, even when business is not on our agenda.
In business and in life, a strategic effort up front, without overdoing it or getting caught up in things you can’t control, allows the anticipation of a future moment to land exactly the way it was meant to be.
Brewed From Within
#93 📖 Life & Happiness