This week, I was in Edinburgh with one of our team and had the opportunity to go to a networking event.
It was focused on marketing. It would have been a good opportunity to meet other marketers. They even had an open mic night for practicing your latest pitch or idea.
And I decided not to go.
Not only that, I chose, instead, to simply….wander.
I walked through the National Gallery and looked at paintings of the Scottish highlands that I’d never seen before. (Of course, those would be the ones I gravitated towards!) I went back to the Starbucks we’d been working at earlier, and tried to get more work done, but my brain wasn’t braining, so I stopped. I looked up a restaurant I’d been wanting to visit, and walked twenty minutes to get there only to find out they were booked up for the next hour. I tried a few other restaurants before choosing one completely at random (and having a delightful meal). I read a little of my current book, Unreasonable Hospitality. (Next week I’ll share notes on that one!)
Nothing was scheduled, it felt very random, and at times I was almost bored. “Why didn’t I just go to the networking event?” I wondered, as I popped into another restaurant, perused the menu, and changed my mind again.
But after dinner something switched, slightly, in my brain. I started noticing things – the glowing golden light coming from a tiny window in a grey stone building. A stained glass sign “Spirits” shining out into the darkness. Shining purple light flowing out of a hotel door, onto the stone steps, like a carpet. (View photos on Instagram here)
I’d had a tough few days healthwise. I’d done a lot of travel. I’d gotten the critical work done I needed to. I knew my brain and energy were not at the level they needed to be for a networking event – being friendly, meeting people, remembering names, remembering anything at all. (Remembering my own name or company, perhaps.) And I knew one of our team was going, so if there was any PF repping to do, that was covered.
So I chose the random, wandering, almost-bored evening: and it was an excellent choice. I realised I was taking my own (creative) advice: change your perspective.
Stand on the desk. Sit in a different chair. Turn the chair around the other way. Shift the desk slightly. Work from a coffee shop. Read a new book. Wander an old street. Pick a random restaurant. And along the way, listen to your energy.
Sometimes powering through is the way. Sometimes it’s stopping. Or doing the most important piece and then resting.
Since then I’ve had a few miniature breakthroughs, finished work on some of our bolt-ons (if you need help with SEO or CRM, we’ve now got you covered!), and made progress on an exciting new project which isn’t revealed yet. This is – always – what happens when you take a little creative headspace. The impact isn’t always felt straight away – it could be days or weeks or even months later. But it always has an impact you didn’t foresee.
Take the headspace, even if it seems less business-y. Less like the sort of thing you “ought” to do. Weigh it up and decide what you need to do (nothing wrong with a good networking event, especially if you need new leads!): and then stick with it, even if you wonder why you’re doing this weird thing. Standing on your desk might feel silly: but it gives you new perspective.
…which is exactly the advice I give myself in “Accountants, You Are Creative“! Imagine that: taking your own advice.
