It has been two months since I posted a new blog. Two months since I unintentionally took a leave of absence from what I love to do: writing and blogging.
It just happened, no real explanation to it. Commuting to work every day I thought about my next series of blogs, but never got a chance to sit and write them down. I don’t know, my best guess is life got busier, and writing took a backseat in my mind.
One would think after the success of my last blog “A Think Piece of Sunday #4: If I Told You One of Your Biggest Blessings was a Rejection, Would You Believe Me?” I would post more frequently. Catching the next wave before the wave I was riding settled, but that did not happen. One of the downsides of when your side hustle is not your main hustle, time.
Please note I had no personal issues during my absence. In fact, my time away has been great! Spending it with family and friends, running behind my son, visiting a new city (thank you for a great time, Raleigh and Apex, NC), attending a Lizzo concert with my wife and family in Atlanta, celebrating Halloween with matching family costumes, learning new things, all of this served as a much-needed getaway. Not a getaway from blogging, but a getaway from my normal Monday through Friday. Time used to enjoy other parts of my life.
Although blogging and writing was not included during the last two months, I had it on my mind daily. Now, I am back! The pencil and notebook are here, the laptop is ready, and the brainstorming is forecasted to be strong. My dedication has been revived to a new level. I am excited to share with the world more of my thoughts and perspectives. I still want to see how far I can go with this blogging. Crafting every part of its future success, it’s the ambition in me that drives my passion for writing.
As I close out this quick blog, I want to thank you all for the follow. I am so excited I have 50 subscribers in my first year of blogging, I thank you all. Please feel free to like and comment on any blog post I have. Share with others that you know. And if you like what you see on my site and want to come along on this journey…join The Book of Think Pieces family by subscribing. Have a great Sunday.
It’s the best month of the year, September! I can hear Earth, Wind, and Fire singing “September” in my head right now as I type this. And despite the horoscopes, what’s not to love about this month?
The weather gets a little cooler outside as Fall/Autumn arrives, the days get a little shorter, and nature becomes a little more colorful. Our favorite TV shows return for a new season. It is also the return of college and professional football meaning some of us have mindless hours of TV watching over the weekend. Schools from preK to college are back in full swing (test, books, and all). For some of us September represent a fresh start and new beginnings. A time to finish what we started during the hot summer months or start something brand new altogether. A time to really grind in our careers, or take on a whole new career path.
So, to all my September born family, friends, online friends, bloggers, followers, etc. have a Happy September!
On the last week of July of this year my family and I traveled to Aiken, South Carolina for a family reunion consisting of extended family from my grandfather’s parents (my great-grandparents) bloodline. And let me tell you, we had a great time. And…what I enjoyed the most about it is the family reunion was a traditional family reunion.
Yes! A traditional family reunion like the ones you saw on TV and/or attended once in your life. Set at Odell Week’s Park we gathered under a pavilion set in the middle of the park. The temperature was around 88, but a few clouds, a pavilion, and plenty of trees kept up somewhat cool. The tradition was there; grilled food, distant cousins of every generation, laughing, taking pictures, older family members dancing to old school black family music, family reunion t-shirts, the “Wobble” and the “Electric Slide,” did a Tik Tok video (not all of us), and played games like cornhole, spades, uno, chess, checkers, sac racing. From our oldest living family member to the newborns, it was the perfect family bounding experience we needed. The family love we shared on that warm Saturday afternoon in July was special. It was like the family reunion never took a hiatus for a few years. Tradition mixed with the new age. It is something every family member should experience especially if you come from a big extended family like myself.
On the way home I thought about my first blog. Just to summarize, I questioned if black families may have inadvertently lost its traditional role in today’s black culture and if social media contributed to it. From my perspective the internet became more prevalent and affordable in our everyday lives over the last two or three decades, and our methods of staying connected benefitted from it. Before we knew it our culture became consumed with the digital era perks as new information became consumer’s knowledge in less time (sometimes as soon as it happened) with the help of smartphones. My opinion was avid posting left little to no surprise value, so the need to be present for events like the annual family reunion is not as important as it once was. Also, we as a culture are busier than ever and have moved longer distances from family. It’s not that we avoided family gatherings on purpose, it could be we just don’t have the desire to make the long trip when smartphones and social media makes it so much easier to send information to family from the comfort of our own homes.
Then I started to think about how corporate has really taken over in our society which sometimes push culture to the side. I am starting to experience this trend in one parts of my everyday life. Corporate is all about making money and managing your time to continue to make more money. It is work hard now so later you can “maybe” climb up the corporate latter with the possibility of living the financial life you deserve. It is the if it’s not making you money then it’s wasting your time. Sleep when the work is done (if I wrote this blog in 2012, I would have call this #TeamNoSleep). It is gain, gain, gain. Increase, increase, increase. Expand, expand, expand at all costs.
Corporate is not all bad, don’t get me wrong. Going corporate is a form of business growth and recognition. For starters it is our way to earn a larger income. There are promotions and awards for your hard work. Growth is there in corporate. New opportunities await you each day. The chance to prove your worth is unmeasurable depending on where your company values are.
Although this is great for business, going corporate can usher in a competitive environment. Who does what better and why does this group or person deserve more of your business? Businesses scramble to prove their worth over the competition sometimes doing whatever it takes to claim that number 1 spot which is determined mainly by yearly revenue over quality of work. If it means working long hours and staying open 24/7, then it will happen with no regards for how the actual workers feel. At this point corporate loses the personal relationships that culture developed and replace it with a business relationship. This makes it easier to replace anyone who does not live up to corporate’s expectations. No matter how great or unproductive of a worker you are, you can still be let go. Only those who fully invest their lives into corporate can handle this lifestyle. To go fully into corporate, they are willing to sacrifice their culture (even friendships) for a corporate life.
Then, there is culture. Proud, colorful, family-oriented, country-specific, ethnicity-driven, knowledgeable, traditional, fashionable, and marketable just to name a few. It’s what defines us, especially as African Americans. From our hairstyle to our personality to the clothes we wear, culture is always there. It holds tradition and keeps us in line with our roots. Culture gives us a reason to unify and identify with others who share the same or similar culture in a world where we are the minority. In the past corporate was able to separate itself from culture by creating handbook rules that told you how to dress, what you can listen to, and even how to talk. But when talent left for corporations that accepts their cultural side, you started to see corporate allow some culture to be on its premises. And what caused the change that made corporate loosen up on its rules regarding culture? Take a wild guess…it’s the loss of money and seeing other corporations that allowed a little culture to have positive impact on their earnings. In a sense culture does not have to follow the market like how corporate does.
We can turn our backs on culture, but it will always be there with open arms and a forgiving spirit. There are no cutting ties from it because if you were born into culture, it will always be there by your side. No matter how much money you make, you move up the corporate ladder, you move up in class, or busier you become, a part of you will still have culture on the inside.
So, before you make that decision I must ask, are you sure you want to trade in your culture to become corporate? How much of your culture do you want to sacrifice just to become corporate? If you built certain aspects of your life with culture initially involvement, would you later regret it if corporate no longer wants you around?
A think piece for you to think about: Where corporate will move on from you, culture will move with you.
Reference
Thompson, P 2021, ‘Has the Traditional Black Family Become Disconnected in Today’s Black Culture: A Perspective’, The Book of Think Pieces., no. 1, posted 16 June 2021, <https://wordpress.com/post/bookofthinkpieces.com/71>.
If you haven’t figured it out by now, let me say this again. We love to celebrate milestones here at The Book of Think Pieces no matter how big or small it maybe. It takes courage to share your work with the world, so each milestones builds onto our encouragement. It encourages us to keep blogging, keep promoting our work, don’t give up. That major milestone is coming one day, but for now, let’s celebrate every milestone like we won a championship.
The newest milestone to add to the list is 100 likes! It took a year and almost a month to reach this milestone. With more followers, 20-something blog post, an iPhone, and advertising each blog through social media with no actual page, it’s safe to say this particular milestone means I am doing something right with this blogging.
Most important, I did not reach this milestone on my own. YOU, yes YOU, made this possible. My wife and son who are my inspiration to keep writing. My extended family’s who support me. My friends, coworkers, and subscribers. Thank you all for reading and liking my work.
After 100 likes I believe promoting my work has become easier. At first I had to give myself a “you can do this” pep talk just to share on Facebook. Too focus on the “what ifs” I would often delay sharing when all I needed to do was share and send. I put too much emphasis on writing a caption thinking this would capture my followers attention. Now, after I finish a blog, I keep my captions short with a link. The right people will click and like. And…Twitter played a big part to promoting my work. #Writerslift and #bloggertribe really came through. It helped me network with other bloggers and content creators in return for support of their work.
Still growing, still learning, but most importantly, enjoying the blogging journey. Closing out I encourage all content creators to not get discouraged when your best does not get likes. Keep working hard, and one day you will see your hard work has finally paid off.
Hello readers! I took a little time off from writing to be even closer to my family and friends while working at my primary. June was a month of celebrations for us, so taking a step back from writing blogs happened naturally.
I got this notification a few weeks ago thinking to myself “Me reaching 20 post? Can this be real?” And to answer my own question, yes!
What this new milestone taught me was my writing to posting evolution and producing quality work. When I started this blog I may have been too structured, meaning I only wrote and posted what I planned for. Writing a blog on paper one week, proofreading then typing to posting within a month. Calculating every step from the brainstorm beginning to the post ending only to realize when life happens, it often caused delays. Blog post kept being pushed back to later times in order to satisfy some of life’s demands and failing to meet my own dates more times than what I anticipated. Then more topics to blog about would surface in my brain. Before I knew it, I had all sorts of ideas that remained as thoughts only for some to make it to paper while others never had its title written down.
I noticed most bloggers I follow post at least 3 blogs a month or more, some one a daily or a few a week. I asked myself how can I post more? I cannot make blogging my primary at the moment, but I do want to maintain momentum in writing and catch every open opportunity to enjoy my hobby. I have an audience, no need to sit on blogs if I am trying to grow. That’s when I started to skip physical writing on pencil and paper, and started typing my blogs when I felt this think piece need to get published in a short amount of time. Free of the structured restraints I set myself up for I started to see post published within a week. Then life happens, and those free writings would stay saved on my laptop longer than I originally planned. Some of those writings would later be deleted because I found myself missing the time I wanted to post. The topics only worked for trends, i.e. something that happened during a certain time where if I waited too late to post about it, the world and my audience moved on from what was trending, and I would be posting about it when it’s no longer interesting. Aww, the struggles of juggling different lives while maintaining a little free time for myself is no joke.
Which lead me to an even quicker time of blogging that I call bypass blogging. Yes, bypass blogging (I hope no one else thought of this name although I am sure the majority of writers and bloggers do their work like this). We take our smartphones with us everywhere, right? With family and work time in addition to trying to stay healthy while getting a good night’s sleep I do not always have the time to sit down and write a blog. So when I notice I have a little free time I work on my blogs from my smartphone. I can be on lunch break at work and complete a few paragraphs of a blog, save, and finish later. Or, I can be at home or in another town without having to carry my laptop everywhere. My phone is quick and easy, and the app is there for me to type. I found myself starting a blog, completing, and posting on the same day. Quick and easy, just like how society wants everything to be nowadays. I would bypass pencil and paper just to post a quick blog
What started out as structured, by the book writing-to-blogging evolved into different styles of how to post a blog in a timely manner while living my life. I am still learning as a blogger to improve my craft. I take a free course from time to time to improve my writing skills so I can present quality blogs to this blog site. I even seek inspiration from other bloggers when they post improvement blogs for new and experienced bloggers. If I had it my way then blogging would be pencil to paper, editing to typing, final reading to posting type blogging. The process of writing on paper to publishing means more to me than a quick post. I value the time it takes to create a good quality blog rather than posting a large quantity of blogs
Here’s to 20 post! Whether I started a blog from scratch or created a quick blog in a day, I am proud of the blogs I post. More blogs will be posted in the future. Before I close, I leave this advice to anyone starting out in blogging or doing any type of work. Whether you can create 20 products in a month or a year, work at a pace that will benefit you. Sometimes we look at other’s work and become intimidated when they produce faster than we can. It will cause us to question our own work efficiencies especially when others begin to criticize our work or say we could be more productive at work if we did this better, faster, or work like their top worker. Like a wise co-worker once told me,:
“There will always be someone who works faster than you, and there will always be someone who works slower than you. There will always be someone smarter than you, and there will always be someone not as smart as you. But the most important thing you can control is you, and that’s all that matters.”
What this means is faster and smarter does not equal work proficiency. You can be the fastest worker on the job making the most of your time, and still produce poor results. Or you can be the fastest on the job and still make costly mistakes, and vice versa. Your quality of work has no correlation to the work quantity (volume) you can produce. So, work at a pace that works best for you and focus more on producing good quality work.
As I sit here on this balcony outside of Atlanta, GA at 10:56 am listening to Tony! Toni! Toné! song titled Anniversary, my writing senses began to go off. It’s the absolute perfect moment to write a blog. The temperature outside before 11:00 am is 73. The Sun is shining with plenty of clouds in the sky, no rain in the foreseeable future. Several large trees are standing tall adding shade to where I am sitting. You can hear its leaves sounding from the light breeze that gently sways the trees from left to right. Down below, a row of smaller trees maybe no more than 5 feet tall act as a fence separating the homes from the outside.
This is a blissful moment. I am off work today and vacationing for Memorial Day Weekend. No hustle and bustle from its demands. Just me, my family, my music, laptop and the beautiful weather we are experiencing. The only thing missing right now is a frozen coffee, caramel frozen coffee if we are being specific, and brunch. Not to mention I keep staring at the following image:
As I type this blog from my new iPhone while listening to Apple Music’s Classic R&B radio station, I asked myself, “What will I blog about today?” It needs to be something peaceful and tranquil, something to represent being thankful. It also needs to be something quick before this perfect opportunity closes! So, I went to my WordPress homepage and noticed I missed a notification. I clicked on it to see two or three days ago I missed my one year anniversary of registering my site, The Book of Think Pieces, to WordPress!
Wow! I have officially been a blogger for over a year now! Who would have thought? The planning, time, and effort I put into blogging has been a joy. I would not trade it for the world! Reflecting back over the year of blogging I have come a long way. The cheap notebook with an even cheaper mechanical pencil reminds me of the humble beginnings. The blogs I wrote in that notebook at home and while on breaks at work gives me peace and visions of how successful I am becoming. Yes, I am still growing, learning, taking free courses to perfect my craft. I still have plans to keep blogging because I have so many ideas and stories I want to share through this site. As the views and followers continue to come, I am very thankful for each and everyone of you for being apart of this journey. I wish I could do this full-time, but I love what I do for a living outside of writing just as much. Maybe one day there can be a way to combine the two, who knows!
Seeing this achievement gives me even more inspiration to keep writing and pushing the limits one blog at a time. I thank you all once again for visiting my blog. And as they say on TV…
About a year ago, I was working out on a home elliptical and came across an iFit fitness series by iFit Trainer Dr. Jarrod Spencer called “Anxiety: Work It Out.” In the series he talked about his career as a sports psychologist and how he helped athletes overcome anxiety now focused on helping others understand anxiety, learn triggers, and how one maybe able to help loved ones minimize anxiety episodes. He explained what anxiety is from a science and general standpoint while telling ways to manage it. Before this series I was aware of what mental health is because it gained more national attention over the years. I began to study it more during my free time through search engines and reading articles from people who shared personal testimonies of their own struggles with mental health.
Maybe on the third, fourth, or fifth workout of the series, Dr. Spencer asked a question that stuck with me to this day. I believe it was during the perfectionism and anxiety workout which may also be the title. I remember in the workout video he was walking on the beach sand as waves splashed against the sand in and out. As I pedaled on the elliptical with a resistance setting of 9, he asked, “Have you, the person who is caring for someone with anxiety and mental health, been taking care of your own mental health? Have you sought help to make sure you yourself do not become a victim of your own anxiety?” Of course, this isn’t word for word. I began to slow down my workout just to process the question he asked. I never thought about mental health for those who don’t have it or for those who care for others with it. Anxiety, in particular, seemed to always be a focal point of mental health, but I never thought about it for those who don’t normally suffer from it.
So I began to ask myself do I have some anxiety I am not aware of? Do I stress about some things more than others? Considering we were all still in a pandemic, social injustice being a daily topic on the internet, racial tension, mass shootings in the US, job losses, inflation, debt looming over all of our heads, uncertainties about the financial stability of our workplaces, supply shortages, all while keeping up with the demands of daily life, what am I doing to take care of my own mental health?
As Dr. Spencer explained although we may not have known mental health related issues, it is good to check our own mental health while helping others. This can happen by talking with someone like a trusted friend, family member, professional counselor or spiritual leader about the problems you face. Even if you have no major problems that can trigger stress and anxiety, just openly speaking with someone you trust or a professional counselor can make a world of difference in your mental well-being.
Think of it this way. The doctor and nurses aren’t professionals you visit only when you don’t feel well or health is declining, you get annual checkups to ensure you’re healthy. If test results reveal something abnormal about your health, you become aware and will work towards improving it. Same goes for physical fitness. You don’t turn to physical fitness only for competition or to lose weight. Physical fitness and a healthy diet is something you do to also maintain your physical health. Even routine maintenance and inspections help keep your car running longer to minimize the damage caused by long-term use. Your mental health needs to same initial care from time to time no matter how mentally strong you are.
Since the month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month, why not take some time to invest in your mental health even if you don’t have any know issues. Like going for a routine checkup, our brain also needs primary care to perform at its best. There are so many resources out there to help in today’s society you’d be surprised just how healthy your mental health really is. And if you are the strong friend who’s always listening and supporting your friends during a mental health situation, an anxiety attack, and/or a personal conversation, your mental health could use some strengthening, too. Bearing the weight of someone’s mental health can take a toll on you. Oftentimes, it can become a burden on your mental wellbeing whether or not you recognize the triggers your brain is sending. It’s ok to be mentally strong and feel down from time to time, your body does it when you’re too tired to keep going. Just know there’s no shame in admitting sometimes you need help replenishing your own mental health, too.
So as we recognize May as Mental Health Awareness Month, let’s not forget mental health is not only for those who suffer, but also for the friends and family who have it all together.
Once again, I cannot thank you enough for the views, love, support, and subscriptions to The Book of Think Pieces. This blogging journey has been enjoyable, and I have not hit one year yet! Sure there were some ups and downs, a few setbacks, delays, and plenty of writer’s [bloggers] blocks, but I kept going. I kept seeing the good in this blogger’s world and used it as motivation to keep writing. To Kenya, the country, thank you for your views. Then to #writerslift, #writingcommunity, #blogging, and other creative writer’s hashtags on twitter, I thank you! I did not forget about you previously.
So, after reaching the 1000 views milestone, what is next for The Book of Think Pieces? What do I have in store for the views and subscribers?
…Well, the answer is simple. I will keep writing, keep hustling. I will think of more content to blog about. As I mentioned in my previous blog After 1000 Views1I have to keep blogging because I love to write and keep my main audience engaged. I may write about something that creates a debate, or I may write about my experiences. Maybe write a fictional short story or two. But most importantly, I want to do this because writing is my hobby. I want to keep being original. As I gain more followers, I want to support my fellow bloggers. Most importantly, I want to share my work through promoting online.
I thank you all again for the views! I attempt to inspire and uplift my viewers through blogging. I also like to give my viewers a unique perspective about several topics. In the meantime, I hope you all have a great day. Stay great and stay positive. Remember, there is only one you in this world, and you only have one life to live, so make the most of you and take care of yourself along this journey we call life.
Be on the lookout for my next blog post coming soon…thank you!
We at The Book of Think Pieces like to celebrate every milestone. Why? Because small wins lead to a major victory. When this blog was just an idea I knew one thing was certain, I enjoy writing. It’s a craft I developed in the third grade. Keeping a journal from time to time and making long post about thoughts, I knew this was a hobby turned passion.
Life came fast when the Covid-19 Pandemic became official. While working in my primary career as a Quality Assurance Analyst, I wanted to start a side hustle based on a hobby. I have seen peers do it by selling products they make or start something online like a podcast, so I asked myself what am I good at that can work as a side hustle? A year before the pandemic I had a small stint as a public speaker. My primary job’s human resources department asked me to speak to a group of local fifth and sixth graders at their career day about myself, why I went to college to major in Chemistry, my job, and what I do on the job on. After that ended, I spoke at two high schools at their annual career days.
My public speaking days ended when enforced restrictions increased to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. Thinking to myself I knew I enjoyed writing but do I have the confidence to share my work to an online audience? Do I have the online influence to have a continual audience? That’s where I thought about starting a blog. It was just a simple idea from my wife and plans to start a podcast that I decided a blog with a little podcast-like influence may work for me as a side hustle. With her support, I began planning this blog a few days after Christmas 2020. Purchasing a cheap notebook and mechanical pencils from the dollar store I wrote my first five blogs. From there I set up meetings for myself to create, research, and organize this blog. I was set on a mission to turn my hobby into a side hustle.
And from my first blog post in June to today, almost nine months later, here I am still blogging with 1000 views and counting. And I thank each and every one of you for your support! Without you taking the time to view my post, I would be just another side hustler who started something but did not finish. I have grown as a blogger since the first post. My confidence is restored, and my blog is growing as we speak. So, I thank you. I must say it was not easy. Fighting self-doubt was a mountain I had to climb with encouragement hoping things getting better. With that being said, here are some things I learned after 1000 views:
“Enjoy blogging because you love to write, not because you’re looking for views.”
Words said by a wise woman, my wife. Once my blog was up and running, I was writing to blog as a hobby. I must admit the analytical side of me began to take over. For a short time I became too obsessed with the numbers. I was checking the stats daily to see if I gained views. When the numbers increased, I was cool. I fed off that energy to continue thinking of topics to write about. However, like anything in life, what goes up must come down. When this happened, I became too focused on self-promoting by over sharing my blogs on my social media pages hoping each virtual friend and family member would click on the link. And if I did not get the views I thought I should I have I would post again. It became a nightmare trying to keep up with blogging while maintain my life outside of blogging in hopes that I would see 1000 views off one post.
“The number of followers and friends you have on social media does not equal to more views.”
Ok, so I have a decent amount of Facebook friends and Twitter followers. What can I say? I joined Facebook when you had to have a college email to join. During that time, I had been active in groups and work with people who wanted to be Facebook friends later, and like any ordinary person during this time, I accept it. Now many of my Facebook friends are family members (I come from a large family) and hometown people. Throw in colleagues from over the years, my college friends (my original Facebook friends), in-laws, and distant relatives…and now the number grew to where it is today.
And you know what happened? Those numbers did not turn into views. I did not exceed the number of followers and friends I have on social media on a single post like I wanted. Thinking maybe I was going about this wrong, I began to wonder if I had the social media influence to gain large amounts of traffic to my site. But, like most side hustlers would say, it may take years to gain a large audience. This leads to my next lesson learned:
“Focus on your main audience”
And your main audience are the day ones. In my case it is family, close friends, and fellow bloggers who follow and post similar content. Attracting a large audience is not easy at all. The problem is it will be impossible to please everyone. You begin blogging for likes, views, and followers, but eventually it can lead to a lack of substance because you will become too concerned with pleasing the crowd. One day you will blog about things you like or what you are passionate about, but when the audience disagree with you blog you will spend more time trying to maintain a large audience rather than blogging because you enjoy it.
By focusing on my main audience, I discovered not only do I enjoy blogging and writing more, but I also do not overly concern myself with views. I do not feel pressured to meet a schedule of when to blog. Focusing on myself and my main audience makes blogging easier and less stressful. It is an undescribed boost of confidence knowing I have a main audience who supports me rather than blogging for views. #WritersLife.
“You cannot piggyback off someone else’s side hustle”
I have side hustling friends, family and colleagues. Their side hustles consist of selling homemade goods, working a second job, afterschool classes, ride sharing, some type of virtual assistant, and others; anything to make extra money.
Here’s me. When this blog I started to gain attention I figured I could “piggyback” off the a few of my colleagues success in their side hustle. I saw how people were willing to pay whatever they could to support their business. I figured if I told them about my free site maybe I would receive the same support. The keyword is maybe. And how did that turn out for me? Let’s just say maybe 10 of those people actually subscribed.
Maybe I was not aggressive enough when promoting my blog or perhaps the same people are not really interested in reading a blog whether it is free or not. I had to learn is my side hustle is not theirs so I cannot except the same people to be as supportive because I know or work with them. Instead, as I mentioned above, I had to continue blogging because writing and blogging is something I enjoy doing.
“It’s ok if my blog is not specific.”
When I told people about my blog, they asked this same question. “What is your blog about?” My replay would be the same scripted line I rehearsed since the beginning, “I don’t know. It’s my thoughts or whatever I feel like talking about.” Audiences like specific blogs. Most blogs out there are just about travel, fashion, food, lifestyle, music, parenting, religion, tv and movies, politics, sports, motivation, and the list goes on. My blog, on the other hand, tends to dabble in different topics because that’s how I designed it. Online blogs warned about this type of blogging because it may not attract a large audience, and I respect that. However, I am fine with my blog not being made for a specific audience. I consider it a free thinker’s blog where I share my perspective on various topics and hope to get feedback.
“The views will come. Be patient.”
Regardless of where I am, one thing I am confident about is the views will come. Yes, through one year and 10 post there were times I wondered if I had it. Putting my post out there for the world took courage, but the views did always add up. Some blogs were homeruns, meaning I posted it and the views exceeded my expectations. Many of my blogs were base hits which tend to be my average. Some blogs struck out meaning I posted it, but the views did not meet my expectations. Instead of feeling down the complements I receive from family, close friends, and fellow bloggers who I do not know personally but we support each other makes me not focus on the views.
As I end this blog, I would like to thank God for making this possible. My wife who supported my dream from day one. My office assistant, my son, who plays while we are at work. My family. When I told them I started a blog, they subscribed with no hesitation. My close friends who subscribed to my blog within the first 10 blogs, I thank you all for that. Then, I cannot forget about all the subscribers, the likers, the commenters, and readers who have provided continual supporters to my blog. I thank you all and wish you the best in your future endeavors!
Before I begin, I would like to create an imaginary scene. Ready? Keep reading…
Your eyes open, and you are standing in the middle of a half-acre field. The weather is warm, and the sky is cloudy. Periodically, sunlight shines through the clouds. A seasoned wooded fence painted in dull white surrounds the ends of the field. The grass is dark green with a few small brown spots here and there. Crabgrass and dandelions are spotted throughout the field. You look down at your bare feet wiggling and curling your toes to feel the rough texture of the grass blades underneath your feet. As you rub your feet on the grass hard brown dirt is exposed from underneath the grass. In front of the fence to the left is a regular height apple. It produces small apples dispersed throughout its branches. A wooden basket halfway filled with apples picked from the tree sits under the tree. Across from the tree is a tiny pond. This is home. A place you have been complacent in for years. It has enough to maintain, the field work has been routine and simple.
Suddenly, the door of opportunity appears in front of the fence emitting a bright yellow light around its corona. At first glance you ponder on the idea of walking through the door because you do not know what’s inside. “Is this new opportunity for me? Will I be as successful as I am now? What does the new opportunity entitle?” More thoughts flood your mind remembering times others talked about the door of opportunity appearing and walking through it is a chance worth taking. Are there better opportunities on the other side? Is the grass greener, and the sun shines brightly all the time? Plenty of people have walking through this door and succeeded. So, what do you do? You open the door and walk through.
With one hand turning the doorknob then pushing the door forward you walk through. Feelings go from complacent to excited as you take one step in the new field. The first thing you notice is the grass really is greener on the other side with no brown spots. The Sun shines brightly in the sky. This new field measures at one full acre (maybe more) surrounded by a new fence made of white vinyl. In front of the fence to the distant left are two apple trees with an abundance of apples hanging from their branches. There are so many apples on the tree the branches hang low. Resting in the tree’s shade are a few buckets filled with freshly picked apples. To the distant right is a large pond with water so clear you can see the fishes swimming. Without stepping completely through the door, you can already see this field looks better than your current field. It even feels and smells better. There are so many opportunities you can take in this new field with time and preparation.
Now is your chance to walk through. So, you do. With one barefoot in you already notice how much softer the grass is. The softness of each grass blade rubbing against the sole of your feet feels you with excitement for the new opportunity. “Ok, I’m here,” you tell yourself as you walk through leaving the door slightly cracked opened.
A short amount of time has passed since walking through the door of opportunity, and you start to notice this new opportunity does not feel the same as it did at first. For some time, you thought you were the problem with failing to meet the demands of the field. Unknowingly, you put in more time in this field than before. As you reflect on the time that passed you begin to realize just how much harder and more time you spent maintaining the field. That soft grass you walk on requires more watering days just to maintain its greener appearance. The soil needs to be carefully fertilized to maintain the nutrients. The pond with clear water requires a lot of cleaning, water testing, and replacing just to keep its purity. Those two apple trees that produce an abundance of apples has low hanging branches, but the tree is too high for you to pick them from the ground. And those baskets full of apples are small and lack depth in comparison to the basket at your last field.
So maybe this new land did not live up to its expectation. Sure, it is plentiful, but the amount of work it takes to maintain its beauty does not meet the visual description.
You slowly walk to the end of the land, stop at the fence, and turn around to see the door you walked through. It is still slightly open but emits no light. You decide to walk to the door just to see the old field. To your surprise, everything is still the same. There is still a chance to go back, but should you? On one hand this new field of opportunity is very abundant, but the workload is above the expectations. On the other hand, you are still familiar with the old field. It had its problems and lack rapid growth, but the workload to maintain its beauty was at the right level for you to maintain a stable balance between work and peace. After contemplating whether to stay in the new field of opportunity or not, you decide walking through the door back into your old field maybe best.
And sometimes, that is how new opportunities (without the visuals) can be when accepting the offer without truly knowing the amount of work it requires. At first it sounds like a dream come true when chances of rapid growth are involved. It’s appealing, new, exciting, and most importantly, it has promise. Your optimism takes over as you begin to work in this new role. But like all things new, it eventually grows older. Once you become accustomed in the new role, that same role loses its “new” adjective, and becomes just a role. What now? Do you still feel the same as you did before or are you realizing this new opportunity does not live up to its expectations? Is it time to look for another opportunity whether it is brand new or going back to a place or position you once worked?
It is in our DNA to chase after new opportunities in hopes that it is better than our last or current role especially when we become dissatisfied with unchanging situations or lack of growth. This may explain why some people move from one job to the next every 2 to 3 years. When our current role becomes dull and commonplace and seems to be going nowhere, we begin to wonder if there is something better elsewhere. Maybe this new opportunity will result in more pay and happiness with better benefits, this new relationship will lead to love and marriage, or a move to a new town/city will equal more opportunities for growth.
What happens when you accept this new opportunity only to discover what you once had may have been better although it lacked in growth and development? It was not perfect, but somewhere in it you maintained happiness over a longer period despite its flaws. Is it wrong to go back when the opportunity reintroduces itself? Notice I gave this blog the title Walking OUT From the Door of Opportunity and not Walking AWAY From the Door of Opportunity. This means you are in your new opportunity but have a chance to return to your last. It’s going back to where you once were after spending time in a new opportunity that no longer satisfies you. Now that you took your former opportunity back, what lies ahead? Do you take your experiences from the new opportunity in hopes that you can change its commonplace culture? Do you forget about those experiences and accept the things as the way they are?
The Book of Think Pieces 