A Simple Shift In Perspective
The hill is my teacher, not my foe.
I have a love/hate relationship with a hill. This hill rises about a thousand feet in about a mile so needless to say I dread walking up it.
Going up the hill is painful because it lays bare my fitness level.
This hill knows exactly what I need to work on and it provides many opportunities for me to practice.
I know going up this hill helps me get in better shape but the walk is a challenge and a struggle.
I used to look at this hill as my foe who I needed to conquer, it was an antagonistic relationship on my part. I actively opposed the hill every step of the way.
That was until I had a shift in my perspective.
A moment of clarity
Yesterday my friend who I ran with wasn't feeling too good because of his asthma so we decided to take it extra slow and stop along the way as we walked up the hill.
As I started walking up the hill I started feeling a calmness I had never felt before. The struggle I usually expected and endured along the way had disappeared. I enjoyed each step along the way and took in the sprawling views of distant ridge lines with houses scattered along the top.
This change of pace helped me see the hill in a new friendly light. Instead of constantly butting heads with it, I felt a gentle hand moving me up the hill.
Each step up felt like a teaching moment for me to learn from.
That's when I realized I needed to change my perspective on this hill.
The hill wasn't my foe, it was my teacher.
The hill is teaching me what I need to know, what I need to improve, what I need to consider.
The hill doesn't hold back.
The hill shows me the path forward.
The hill is teaching me what I need to learn the most in each moment I move up it.
Usually, I am in pain going up the hill and my lungs feel like they are about to leap out of my chest but slowing down today gave me a new perspective on the hill I feared.
Getting up the hill took much longer but slowing down helped me change my perspective on the hill.
The hill was my teacher all along, I just had to slow down to change my perspective to see it.
There are many parallels between running and life; this is a lesson we can also apply in our design work. Instead of viewing projects, tasks, or even people as obstacles or through an antagonistic lens, what if we slowed down and shifted our perspective to look at them as teachers who help us learn about ourselves?
Reflection Prompt
In your interactions today at work, find opportunities to shift your perspective from any resistance or negativity you may feel to looking for the wisdom you can gather and apply in your work and life as a mindful designer.
Let me know if this resonates with you.
Till next time, stay mindful! ✌🏽
This kind of intentional shift in my perspective has always saved me from feeling miserable at work :)