Every Thursday night, I meet up with friends to explore the wilderness in which we live.
On bikes or skis or even (occasionally) on foot, we get together to enjoy each others’ company, tell a few jokes, and share a beverage or two.
This get-together is affectionately known as the “Steel Wool” ride and it’s actually on my calendar.
Every week.
All year long.
It’s a block of time I protect vigorously. I do my very best to never miss a Steel Wool adventure.
We have ridden bikes in 0°F temps, regularly backcountry ski at night, and have been known to wait out a thunderstorm or two… all in the name of camaraderie and good (sometimes type-2) fun.
And why am I sharing this with you on this platform designed for and dedicated to business?
Because it’s important to remember why we work and that work is not the most important thing in any of our lives.
So much of the time, we get stuck in “work mode”. When asked how things are going or what we’ve been up to, all we can think about is work. We’ll provide a point-by-point analysis of the minutiae of the goings on at the office, hammering out every last detail, with nary a mention of our families, our friends… our *lives*.
We’ve lost track of why we work in the first place – even going so far as to brag about long hours, weekends spent hammering away on our keyboards, and how little time we take away from the office. We let work invade our every moment. Thinking about it, talking about it, if not outright doing it.
But here’s the deal.
Work should fuel our lives. Not the other way around.
And sometimes, you just need to hop on a bike with your buddies and go explore the woods.
Put something fun on your calendar.
