Earlier today I was parking my car and faffing about clearing some rubbish from it. I was putting said rubbish into a bin on the street, head down, solely focussed on the task in front. When I stepped back out onto the road post bin deposit to go back to the car door, two bikes went by me. As they passed, the person on the second bike shouted out, ‘look where you’re going.’
After initially feeling a bit pride-dented, I recognised of course I could have caused problems for them just stepping out onto the road like that, and as a sometimes cyclist myself I know how vulnerable you are on your bike. His comment was justified. But I still felt a bit ashamed as I walked back into my flat.
After a moment or two I said again in my head his phrase, ‘look where you’re going’, and realised it was a much bigger, better and more powerful message for me right now.
I have been looking at the minutia of things a bit lately, worrying about upcoming tax bills and how to fit cash flow puzzle pieces together, to the point where I’ve been getting a bit disheartened and stressed. But if I take the message ‘look where you’re going’ on board I can remember what work and life are all about.
I can remember that in the future Bird is about supporting more people around wellbeing and resilience, it’s about helping the not-for-profit sector thrive, it’s about showing the system how wellbeing, self-care and mental health support are essential in creating sustainable societies and organisations. I can also remember that my wellbeing is important and that I’m creating a work-life balance that allows for lots of time for creativity, play, connection, exploration and relaxation.
Both may feel a bit tricky right now, but the issues that are showing up are ones that need to be addressed in order to create that longer term vision.
When we look where we’re going we can see that the current struggle is just a small piece in it all. We can see that in the context of a future vision there will be times where things are a bit tricky, but there will also be loads of times where things are going really well. Our job is to remember what it’s all about so we can celebrate all the wins, and lean into creative ways to tackle those bumps in the road.
With love as always, Hannah and Team Bird
Photo by Matt Duncan on Unsplash