Month: April 2020

When I first started working after graduate school, one of my main goals was to get to the right job, making the right money, get all my affairs in order. I had a very linear way of thinking about life. Granted, I was young, and life and been pretty good (and predictable) so far. This was before my mother got sick and passed, the house burned down, my father suddenly passing away along with being laid off. I look back on my younger self and laugh because other than aging and going to school there aren’t many linear paths through our existence.

Those events taught me an important lesson, and now I see something in a new light that we always said growing up in the streets of Richmond CA. We always said: “If you stay ready, you won’t have to get ready.” After losing my first career position, one that I thought I would retire and die in, I learned stay ready. Now I always look for new opportunities. Honestly, it is easier to say no when you have a job than when you don’t.

Like most people, we started off the New Year with clear linear plans for life: home, family, exercise, vacation and career. Things were going as planned on this linear path. Then, a Black Swan events like COVID-19 happens. It will probably send 2020 down as being one of the worse events in our history, but it is a great example of the non-linear path that life takes. It has been a great example of staying ready. For example we had been settling in to a great workout routine in the gym. But gyms are closed. We are actually down significantly in weight since Shelter in Place, because we stay ready and knew what the workout would look like.

Many people have had their retirements postponed, even completely lost. Job offers have been pulled back as unemployment skyrockets. Every plan is probably on hold or destroyed with COVID-19 and the financial crisis that ensued.

Personally, we will overcome this terrible time and new opportunity will be created from this chaos. You just have to be aware and see it for what it is. You have to be ready and flexible to keep going and growing. It was a famous song from a Claymation move “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” called “Put one foot in front of the other” by Jules Bass. This song encapsulates it never being too late to change yourself or your life. It is nearly impossible at this point predict how your life with proceed even with the best laid plans. Keep that in mind, rest assured that there isn’t a perfect time to start anything. If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready.

I am grateful that my wife and I started our side hustle a year and a half ago. Although I am an essential worker with the Department of Public Health, Ann lost all her speaking gigs. She is now working the side hustle full time, and growing it faster than before.

I urge you to take this time to re-prioritize what is important to you and execute on whatever it is, be it the side hustle, a new career, downsizing, a simpler way of living, or even living healthy. Just know it all starts with you taking action and realizing that the path is winding but ultimately this is path you want to be on.  

We have been coached and indoctrinated in the United States in the Protestant work ethic concept. In my early career, I believed and prioritized work over many important things in my life including sleep. My days were long and hard as I was on the forefront of the technical revolution.

You see it throughout our society- people in the 24/7/365 cycle of constant work. People starting their commutes earlier, driving further and working longer. People checking work email from their personal phones, in their bed, morning and night. The line between work and leisure becomes more obscured. You hear people say: “Sleep is the new Broke” I think that should be rephrased to “The Lack of sleep will break you down”.  Our society is such that it is almost a sign of inferiority or laziness to mention that you get eight hours of sleep a night and wake up naturally.

There have been many studies about the high correlation between sleep quality and general health. Let this sink in: most people are killing themselves slowly by not sleeping enough. We all should know a few important things about sleep. Sleep helps us:

1. Process information
   1. Our brains may be the most complex thing in the known universe but as we sleep, short term memories are transferred to long term memories. Problems are solved.
2. Toxin removal
   1. Neurons (brain cells) are energy hogs and thus produce a lot more waste than an average cell. The Glymphatic system is more active when we sleep removing Beta and Tau Amlyoid from brain both associated with Alzheimers disease.
3. Immune system
   1. When we sleep our body releases cytokines which help our bodies fight infection and diseases
4. Promotes recovery
   1. Sleep is crucial in muscle and general body recovery. It is when the body heals form the wear and tear of the day.

I’ve only focused on the physical benefits of sleep so far, but one often overlooked benefit is our relationships with loved ones  and colleagues. You ever notice when you are tired you might become a little short or easily frustrated? That your tone changes or temper is shorter? This impacts your partners, friends and business relations.

I think many of us have heard how important sleep is to our general health and well-being. There isn’t a one size fits all model for our sleep needs, but I like to use the analogy “Worker harder Sleep Harder” (that would be an Earlism if you follow my wife on facebook). There are countless studies that have been performed showing the epidemic levels of sleep deprivation and insomnia in our society. 

• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6473877/
• https://www.sleepdr.com/the-sleep-blog/cdc-declares-sleep-disorders-a-public-health-epidemic/

Instead of trying to stay up all night get a good night rest consistently. Prioritize it and this can become the basis of great physical health and productive relationships both personal and professional. Trust me, the job will still be there.