Turn Down the Volume
[On my high school rock band rehearsal]
“TURN DOWN THE VOLUME!” I shouted, beating my arms wildly.
My friend kept strumming his guitar.
“HEY! I CAN’T HEAR MYSELF. TURN. THE VOLUME. DOWN!” I demanded.
“WHAT?”
Each of us wanted our own instrument to be heard. So we would turn up our amps until we were playing at max volume. With that level of noise, I couldn’t hear myself.
This is what life feels like sometimes, doesn’t it?
Meetings, commitments, expectations, goals, kids… All of them screaming for your attention until you can’t even hear yourself.
Here are a few tips to help you out if your life feels crowded with noise:
Make Room for the Bride
Pat Pattison taught this concept in a songwriting class I took: the message of a song is the bride at a wedding. Everything else reduces their intensity to highlight her.
Your purpose is your bride.
The way to keep purpose at the center is by reducing the intensity on everything else.
You don’t have to say yes to every invitation.
You don’t have to accomplish everything at once.
Commit to the one thing, your purpose, and the noise in your life will turn into music.
Tiny Purposes
Defining ONE life purpose may take months. Start with tiny purposes instead: things you can achieve in one week up to one month and that are challenging you enough to keep you interested, but achievable enough to avoid burn out.
Some examples:
“Draw anything for 15 minutes every weekday for fourteen days.”
“Focus on meditating for 10 minutes every day after lunch.”
“Reach out to 5-10 possible clients every weekday this month.”
This week, make a tiny purpose and focus on it. It will help you gain more clarity, momentum, and excitement.
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