White space

Our lives need to take a hint from good design.

Time is playing tricks on us. It seems to be going in circles. The fact that our german summer is awash with masks and chilled temperatures doesn’t help.

What day is it? How long has it been since I last wrote you? Last week, but actually longer.

We keep busy. So much to do. Entrepreneurs more than others even. Filling countless hours with developing and executing ideas. What drives us is curiosity, passion, bee-like enthusiasm. Where’s the next flower? Where are the others getting their honey from?

My past six weeks have been just that: bee-sy. After months of chewing on an idea, I threw myself into the prototype in May (ages ago almost), working and working some more. 9-to-5 turned into 8-to-11. It didn’t matter, I had a goal: Launch in June.

These intense weeks reminded me how much we are driven by external ideas of success. We pressure ourselves to be better, smarter, bigger, more convenient.

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What about the soulfulness of our projects though? Product development and marketing are arid fields. Deserts of possibility with millions of grain of sand and singular drops of water. I got caught up in the sand-sifting work – both positively and negatively. Positive because I was deep in inspiration and productive mode. Down-side: Did you miss me? I was MIA (missing in action).

I launched on July 2nd. (Pause for reaction, thank you for the kudos.) And now I look back on my work, work that is never finished. I look forward to forming, shaping, evolving and experimenting with my new brand and project.

But for now, I look forward to re-learning to leave some space to breathe and tune out. We all get cornered by our work. Sometimes passion engulfs us and we are elated. Other times, stress runs its fidgety fingers through our life, messing with our inner clocks and pulling at our pulse.

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And in all this, we put pressure on ourselves. Better, smarter, bigger, more perfect, more aligned, more synchronized. More of more. It’s ironic that such imperfect beings seek perfection so obsessively.

Ironic because the little flaws in our work, in ourselves, are what make us authentic. And in the end, authenticity is what all brands strive for. Why do we fight it so, when we truly have it then?

Goals. Goals, goals and more goals. Better, smarter, bigger, more.

When I take this weekend to slow down, I will remember to leave enough white space in my life. Free of perfection, goals and objectives.

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Life is like good design: It needs enough white space to be surprised, inspired and soulful.

Don’t fill every square pixel. Leave space for a breath of fresh air, fresh experiences, new people – or the occasional nap or two. (Sleep is a luxury, after all.)

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Time plays tricks on us. We think we invest it wisely, but we sometimes get side-tracked by our goals and perfection. Don’t fool yourself, the pressure is purely self-made.

So, fellow goal-getters, take this weekend off. Monday will come soon enough. And you’ll be ready and rested.