𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗮𝗵𝗮’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀: this person had forgotten all about integrating play into their daily practice. They’d been so focused on building a business and securing clients that the part of their life that’s just for play, and the creative practice tied to it, had been left by the wayside. Were they stuck? Maybe.  But it was more like stuck by today’s priorities — present bias in real life. The urgent kept crowding out the thing that actually fuels you.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹—𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝘂𝘁. We’re programmed to believe that if we aren’t producing, building, checking something off— then we’re somehow lacking:

🔹Not a “productive person.”

🔹Not “fulfilling our potential.”

Dangerous phrases, because they leave no room to pause and actually think about what you’re spending your time on, and what those activities are giving you… or taking from you. Play rarely fits into what society calls productive. Neither does being curious without an outcome.  But those are often the very things that keep you energized enough to do the other things well.

If you aren’t working with a coach to help you realize this, you might not even notice it’s happening. So here’s a simple tell: your days are full, things are “working,” and you aren’t unhappy… but you don’t feel as bright or energized as you used to. Just… a little dimmer. That’s often the first signal that something important has been crowded out by the urgent. So how do you figure out what it is?

➡️Do a quick scan of the last couple weeks — your calendar, your notes, the things you keep saying you’ll “get back to.” What used to be part of your rhythm that now lives in “optional”?

➡️Or notice for a few days what gives you even a small jolt of aliveness. If something makes you think, “oh… I miss that” — that’s not random.Once you can name what’s been crowded out, you can start weaving it back into your routine without making it a big production.

➡️Schedule it like you schedule clients or projects: real time, on the calendar.

➡️Or use it as a reward: pair it with something that isn’t at the top of your list but still has to get done. (In my case, that might be folding laundry.)

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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁. 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗶𝘁, 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗻𝘁 “𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸.”

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