This Fragile Magic

"What do you pack 
when you pursue
a dream? 
And what do you
leave behind?”
Sandra Sharpe


Every morning you wake up,
you're different.
Your moods filter the words you say.
The words you say on any given day
can change what people say back to you.

It's a simple statement.

The words you don't say on any given day
can change what people don't say back to you.

Is this where we cue in
all the magic words and spells? lol

No it's not.

If I'm tired, I might drink more coffee to pick me up.
I'm trying to overcome feeling tired.
The coffee is going to
change some part of what I say
and how I say it.
If it didn't, I wouldn't drink it.

All of my life direction,
all of the things I care about
gets mixed in with my caffeine band aid.

Then mix in the storms of a day.
Tech problems, too hot outside.
Too cold outside.

All those avatars waiting patiently
in perfect circles.
Rows of needs to be answered.

But there's storms and tech problems.
And the temperature isn't just right.
So now you're at the moment of truth.
Either you act more like a machine
or you accept you're not one.

Because tomorrow's forecast looks just like today.

Piano tuners just accept that pianos have to be tuned.
Software makers update their software
because conditions are always changing.

In business people accept their audiences
are constantly evolving.

That makes predictions difficult.

They wake up asking questions
about how the marketplace has changed.
They would hopefully
never assume their audience
has stayed the same.

Are they factoring in themselves as carefully?
Is there an empathy map for their recent family challenge?
Or should you look at one half of the picture?

When you're in business, there are two points of focus -
you and the person you're focusing on.
To focus only on one - to not bring that
into all your calculations is a little out there.

Changes and challenges
circle everyone in 360 degrees, 24/7.

Money changing hands can be a victory, right? 
A sale is made.
Slippery slope can go down:
Success can create new obligations.
Obligations can make you work long hours
while you treat people like furniture
and lose everyone you care about.

Not possible and never happened - of course.
How can I say such things?

There's a delicate emotional algebra to this.
What you add to one area 
may be taking away from another.
Found time for one project can be
lost time for someone or something you love.
To make one person feel important
may mean risking another feeling ignored.

The balance isn't about feelings.
It's about what people do based on their feelings.
Including you.

When you drive down a local street,
there's usually a painted line in the middle.
One side goes in one direction.
The other side goes in the other.
Two sides of the street.

The only thing keeping cars from crashing
is a painted line and a light with 3 colors.
Red, Yellow and Green.

That's the agreement that holds it all together.
A line and 3 colors.

People form companies
and successful ones go public
and sell stocks.

The wrong headline
can send stocks
plummeting through the floor.
Overnight.

Can you hear me now? lol

You're walking around
with other people's lives in your hands
and you may not be thinking too hard about it.

When you really see 
how fragile things are,
you can see the value of support.

Making art of any kind
to me requires an awareness.
Top museums may rely
on certain lighting to reveal
the life behind a painting.

Music producers can spend days
just on the right drum sound.
Which drummer + hitting which drum
+  which room -+ which microphone.
Change any part of that equation
and the sound changes.

Business requires an awareness
under conditions that are always changing.
Your life is always changing.
The cards are always being shuffled.
You're at a table with people
inside fast changing lives
and shifting environments.

That awareness
can help you slow down
and carefully appreciate
the moments you have.

Appreciation can lead to gratitude.
Hopefully it can make it easier
to lessen the fever dream of the moment
and help the people in your life.

In whatever way you can.


Robert