John Brady completed another trip around the sun today. What got him through this trip? All of the usuals - sarcasm, wit, intellect, dirty jokes, deep thoughts, stupid thoughts, thought-provoking thoughts, family, the favorite grandson (he only has one), and golf. With all of that, I still don’t think today is any more special than any other day. Stay with me.

Birthdays are for remembering birth and appreciating life. If that is what they are for, then wouldn’t every day be worthy of being called a birthday?  

I started thinking that with so many things being digital, we don’t need to sit and meet too often anymore. Do we?We can “meet” over a Google Doc and brainstorm ideas.We can “meet” over Slack/Messenger and quickly get an idea out.we can “meet” over the Zoom while simultaneously working on a shared document. There are so many ways to “meet” without having a meeting.There are so many ways to get work done, without having to meet to do it. Am I opposed to meetings?Nope. I’m just pro finding a better way.

I know it’s been a month. I would apologize, but I am not sorry.The reason it’s been a month is because work picked up quite a bit. Even though it has, I still feel like something is missing.

Ever have that feeling?

I’ve spent a month connecting with over 100 people talking about their careers, the work they want to get to do, and why it matters. I love that work. But something is still missing.

I had a potluck with a friend last night. Potlucks encourage empathy. We have to be curious about the dish someone else made, want to understand how its made, and enjoy the experience of eating it. The work I do now - diversity & inclusion recruiting - feels like a giant potluck. I meet people from all walks of life, understand their stories, and enjoy the experience of connecting them with a job. What if life - and people - felt more like a potluck than a competition?

Be intentional.

If the food tastes divine - you don’t need to gorgeIf an opportunity presents - you don’t need to jump on it.

If someone asks you for help - you don’t need to drop everything and help.

Being intentional means knowing the path you’re on, being aware of your surroundings, and committing to your journey.

Build resilience to say no to the things that don’t matter.

Embrace what does.

I ask myself this question as I sit down to write to you, “What do I want tomorrow to be about?” As a statement of intention, deciding what I hope tomorrow will bring helps me decide how to act today. Having a big goal, long-term plan, strategy, and the whole nine yards is good. But if you can’t decide what tomorrow brings, what good was the long game? The dumbest point of any project plan is when we decide how we’ll act 6 months into the future. The smartest point is when we acknowledge that we don’t know how 6 months in the future will look, but we can reasonably estimate how the next week might turn out. Dream big. Plan small.

Personal efficiency. To do what you’re doing, but do it better. What does doing it better mean? Doing it better means that what you intend to do happens the way you intend for it to happen. I intend for myself to read, plan my day, and blog. I don’t intend for myself to have to do it at the same time every day.  Until now, I had believed that a routine helps me operate at my best. I woke up at a specific time, made coffee a certain way, and sat in the same place to plan my day. Now, I believe it’s something different.Today I did not do any of the things I typically do. Today I woke up later, made coffee, and did some other tasks. It’s now 2:30 pm, and I am writing my blog and thinking about what’s next. I let the beginning of the day be about what “felt” right.  Thinking ahead, I will continue to listen to myself. If I feel a need to explore more, I will. If I need to lean into a ritual, I will. What I am getting better at is listening to myself and giving myself permission to be me.

Being in the woods alone tops playing music on the list of David’s Happy Places. There my thoughts quiet down, I breathe better, and I feel oneness with something bigger than me. Every week I write down that I will spend time in the woods that week. Every week it never happens.  I come from a long line of people who care about the quality of their work. Completed correctly, the first time, and without exception - that’s how they explained it to me.  That mindset makes me good at my jobs - I am a perfectionist.  That mindset makes me an anxious wreck at my jobs, too - I am a perfectionist. And,That mindset keeps me from doing the other work of self-care - because I am a…Caring too much about one thing takes you away from doing the other things that matter. Too much focus on a job that pays can mean too little effort on your health, mind, and spirit.  “But, David, I need to do a good job because I need the money,” says the perfectionist in me. “But what good is the money if you are living a life alone, unhappy, and unhealthy? Was it worth it?”

I sat preparing my music and checking my sounds. Jeff - the other kid - tuned his guitar. I would like to think we - newly minted teenagers - played at St. Jude the Apostle every Sunday because our faith called us. But it was the invitation to get to play music every week that kept us coming back.

Today - it’s Sunday for me - I am driving 2 hours north to play at a church. Sounds like a lot of work for a church gig. I woke up at 5 am, did my morning work, writing to you, and then I’ll prepare to go. I need to arrive by 8:30 am, rehearse, and play service. Then I’ll need to wait 4-5 hours before I can rehearse and play another service. I’ve never played the music before, I don’t know the musicians, and I’ve never attended the church.

Do you try to be as lazy as possible on the weekends? In the past, I’ve made that a habit. I exert tremendous energy into my work that the weekend is for zoning out. Today I approached the weekend like the bees - I worked.  First, I performed the morning rituals. Unloaded the dishwasher, made coffee - Turkish style with cardamom and cinnamon, and nearly finished a book. Now I am writing to you. And next, I’ll plan my day using my EVO planner and start to work.  That was and is work. It requires energy, effort, and a desire to create something important to me, and for someone else - you.  What other ways will I create work today?Buy milk from a farm. I buy raw milk to make yogurt.  Try out a new local farm stand style grocery store - I’m all about the farms today.Discover how a loaf of bread I made turned out. If you’re into bread baking, I purposely fermented this bread a bit longer to see how it would come out.  Discover what chicken brined in pickle juice tastes like. I fermented cucumbers a while back and reusing the juice.I am hoping to take a hike and discover something in the forest.  Discovery is work. I am experimenting, learning, failing, and doing it all again. It’s also fun. If today goes the way I hope it does, I’ll probably approach every day like the bees.