Dear designers,
I recently said to someone that the act of allowing ourselves the time to think is simultaneously one of the most important and most difficult things that we have to do as business owners.
As each day passes us by, we tend to feel the need to fill it with measurable progress. I understand this sentiment. I often live it.
But sometimes checkboxes, tasks lists, and email replies are not what we really need to focus on.
Sometimes, we simply need to think.
It sounds so simple, but I assure you it’s not.
Excuses arise, and for a variety of reasons…
Sometimes we’re scared to think. We’re scared of what we may realize about ourselves, our businesses, or our plans. Its seems easier to just keep plugging along rather than challenge the assumptions we’ve been making and sticking to.
Sometimes it feels indulgent. When the bills need to be paid and progress needs to be made, indulging in a luxurious day of just thinking seems like something you can’t afford to do.
I bet you can guess what I’m going to say next . . . you can’t afford not to do it.
Autopilot is dangerous. Thinking about our fashion business — what’s working, what’s not, what we love, what we don’t, why we started, and whether those same reasons still exist — is what keeps us making moves. It works towards progress, not against it.
Stepping away from the craziness, closing all the tabs, turning off the phone, and just thinking about where we started, where we’re going, and how we’re feeling is not indulgent, it’s not a luxury, and it’s not something we can afford to forget about.
It’s a necessary part of growth.
It’s important that we allow ourselves the grace to understand what we need instead of feeling as though time is working against us.
And thinking time, alone time, reflecting time….these are some of the things we need most.
Lots of love and encouragement,
