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Balance, Perspective & John Keating's Desk

- Friday, May 7, 2021

When you try to live in the moment, one would assume the blurring of time would be expected. That has generally been the case for me. But the blurring of time and events since March 2020 has taken that feeling to an entirely new level. It takes real effort to piece together the memory of key events and accomplishments. It has been surreal. And it has been eye-opening.

Many I have talked to have told me how useful this past year has been. It has forced them to re-envision how they engage their audiences, co-workers, team-mates, family, and friends. They have explored teaching tools and technologies more deeply than they would have otherwise. They have taken better care of themselves with more nutritious meals, intentional exercise, and planned social events. They have taken better care of those they care about.

As we collectively begin to venture back into the world we knew pre-pandemic, we continue to be reminded of how much has changed. And yet one could argue that really nothing ever changed other than our perspective (Queue Robin Williams' character John Keating in the 1989 Dead Poets Society).

In a recent conversation with Pam Montgomery, she combined perspective with this notion of balance. At some point over the past year, I think a feeling of balance is what many realized was missing. It required a change in perspective to even notice it. And for many I've talked to, we didn’t even know how imbalanced we had become. Perspective is a wonderful thing indeed.

Our time here is limited and there is no shortage of ways we might spend it. How do you want to spend your time with work, family, friends, yourself?

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