Lessons In Learning To Enjoy The Moment
I was 36 last weekend.
I appear to have blinked, or micro-slept my way into my mid-late 30’s. But it’s not the main event of the start of 2017 for me. My first child is due any day.
During the lead up to that life-changing event, I’ve had time to reflect, not only on my personal life, but my career and how I live my daily life. How can I be at my best?
More importantly, and something I am desperate to take into fatherhood; how can I make sure I’m enjoying this moment, the moment happening right now?
Yesterday I watched Scotland beat a wonderful Ireland side in the 6 Nations who recently beat the awesome All Blacks, one of their greatest ever achievements. One of their young players was asked if it was difficult to enjoy moments in your career such as that. His response was that it was difficult, because not only is such success often fleeting, there is always the next challenge to prepare for. No time to dwell, onto the next one.
I feel I am at a similar point during my career. I certainly haven’t beaten the All Blacks, but I can reflect on two years at Skyscanner as having been a successful time in my career. But I stand at a crossroads of looking back at some great work and looking ahead to how I can build and progress our team and be even better. I’ll be honest, I probably over-analyse a future goal before I’ve achieved the current one!
I’m beginning to understand that one can only look back on past success so much before drawing a line under it. Nor can one invest too much time worrying about something that is yet to happen or present itself.
What is more important is what one is doing now. Maximising wherever you happen to be at this point in time and enjoying that moment, celebrate that moment if necessary. Then move on. Enjoy it, learn from it, move on from it.