I enjoyed the conversation between @BStulberg and @stevemagness on The Growth Equation on the importance of doing "real things" in the world 🚵🏻♂️
thegrowtheq.com/do-more-real-things-in-the-world-be-better-and-feel-better/
Understanding what they meant by "real things" was a bit confusing at first. I boiled it down to...
Activities that provide a definitive path towards completion, provide tangible outcomes, and allow us to feel a sense of growth and accomplishment.
Doing "real things" is crucial for knowledge workers—of which I'm one 💻
My freelance work exists in a nebulous, ever-shifting space defined by circumstances like who I'm working with and what I'm working on.
I rationalize along the way as I try to stay on top of everything.
Project after project. Client after client. Everything is in flux—expectations shifting.
And then I complete a project, and the client is somehow unsatisfied 🙄
Or, I was so rushed that I had to follow up the initial launch with a week of straight bug bashing 🤦🏻♂️
Or both 😭
These circumstances then make me dissatisfied. Client project launches aren't something celebratory; they're a stressful nightmare.
I'm not proud of what I launched; I'm bashing bugs because of an inflexible and inconsiderate planning process.
Queue burnout.
The same goes for my creative work. I've struggled shipping creative projects for countless reasons.
I'm practicing shipping more writing since it's so much more satisfying. I love sharing my creations with the world.
twitter.com/KeenanPayne_/status/1530364044800012289
I've been trying not to get down on myself for not shipping work as frequently.
Instead, I'm focused on the practice.
twitter.com/KeenanPayne_/status/1530364047404675072
And I've worked, and am still working, on improving my client and creative work so they're more frequently satisfying 👌🏻
But just as important has been investing myself in practices *outside* of client and creative work.
Yoga, biking, hiking—these have all kept me grounded.
I've been committed to yoga for the past year. Every day for 30–60 minutes after waking up. It was tough to make consistent, but I can't live without it now.
Hiking as well. Biking to a lesser extent.
All of these feel so great. I'm always calm and content afterward.
As Brad and Steve mentioned in the episode, doing things by hand connects our actions with their outcomes. It's inherently satisfying to push yourself in an endeavor with a clearly-defined end goal.
It's a thing you can *actually* accomplish.
💡 Do something that challenges your perception of yourself as being the greatest.
❓ What activities provide me with tangible outcomes, a definitive path towards completion, and allow me to feel growth and accomplishment?
Momentum has also been on my mind recently.
There's something to the momentum of having small victories that keeps things feeling effortless.
twitter.com/KeenanPayne_/status/1530364042182742016
I've been maintaining momentum in so many areas recently, and it feels so lovely.
✅ Create
✅ Share
✅ Learn
✅ Read
✅ Write
✅ Hike
✅ Play
✅ Friends
✅ Health
✅ Finance
But all of these happen *so slowly*. Like, so slow. The smallest of wins *have to count*.
You can read the unrolled version of this thread here: typefully.com/KeenanPayne_/JlDHqXy