025: Hard Times
It’s been about a month now since the concerns over the Coronavirus really set in for most of us in North America. Prior to that, we were all aware of it - but it wasn’t really affecting our day to day lives. All of that changed quickly and those first few weeks were filled with a lot of uncertainty and a complete shift in our regular day to day lives. I think we’ve all started to settle into this new temporary normal - whatever that may be. For our industry we still don’t know the short term timeline on things, let alone the long term. It makes it difficult to plan ahead as we used to - who knows when artists will be touring again. With that I think we all have some time on our hands, but our priorities have changed.
As I’ve said before, there are some real concerns during these times - people's health are of primary concern, in addition many will be (or are already) facing some financial hardships. We can be aware of these things and look to help others where we can. I do also think it is important to look for what we can do on a daily basis to give us some sense of control of our careers. With that I’ve got a few ideas.
1. Email Debt Forgiveness Day
A few years ago, a podcast I listen to called Reply All came up with the idea of Email Debt Forgiveness Day and decided to celebrate this every April 30th. The idea is simple. You know that email you meant to send, but never did? And now it’s been too long, how can you reply after weeks or months have passed? Email Debt Forgiveness Day gives you the opportunity to reply guilt free. No apology, no ‘sorry for the late reply’, nothing like that. Simply reply to the email and get it off your chest.
The reality is that all of us have a few of these emails, and what better time than now to take care of a few of them.
You can learn more about Email Debt Forgiveness Day here - and you can include the link in the emails you send. - https://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/posts/edfd
2. Look For Inspiration
When we’re busy, the first thing to go is often time for ourselves. We put off doing things we enjoy, and instead focus on what ‘needs’ to get done. So, what book have you been meaning to read? What movie have you been wanting to watch? What album have you been hoping to listen to from front to back? Take the time now to do it. By doing these you’ll be stepping back from the hustle of normal everyday life and open yourself up for some new inspiration to come in.
3. Projects
You know that project you’ve been meaning to start but never have the time? Well now you have the time. Often when we look to start something new, the hardest part is the first step, I’ve written about that before [The Ascender: 002]. So, get over that part and just take the first step. That can be as simple as starting a list of the things you’ll need to do, or reaching out to a friend to talk about the idea. And don’t just think short term, maybe now is the time to start working on that idea you’ve been putting off until ‘later’.
Before this all happened it was so easy to just keep busy, I think everyone was feeling that. We’ve all been given a chance to step back and take a breath. To catch up on some of those things we’ve been meaning to do, and decide on which things are really important going forward. There will be some hard times ahead, but as my good friend Coco Love Alcorn says - "Out of the hard times in life comes rebirth, out of the hard times in life we grow."
~ Steve