It was exactly the kind of morning I’d journaled about countless times, envisioning my ideal day scenario:
Tuesday, but I woke up on my own time without an alarm. With my daughter at sleepaway camp I had no one to answer to but myself.
The morning sun peeked through the split in the curtains, casting a beam of golden light onto the cool white sheets. A fan softly whirred in the corner and the aroma of freshly brewed coffee danced up the stairs – a gift from my love before he’d left for work.
My day was entirely my own without a single commitment on the calendar.
No Zoom calls, no deadlines, just the time and space to dedicate to creating – working on the new ideas that have been surfacing, begging me to bring them to life.
Eager as I was to get started, I wasn’t quite ready to leave this cozy, idyllic scene.
Without even a second thought, I reached across the bedside table and…
Picked up my phone, unlocking the screen with the soft pad of my finger tip in one deft motion.
Muscle memory activated as I unconsciously navigated from CBC to CNN, watching the day’s horrors flash across the tiny screen in my hands.
Next, I took a cruise through my social media platforms of choice – Threads, Instagram, a quick visit to LinkedIn for my daily dose of broetry.
The spell was broken.
A dark, grey cloud replaced the warm golden light.
The spaciousness I felt not even five minutes prior was now filled with a heavy sadness. My limbs felt like they had been packed with sand.
In a world ravaged by wars, children with empty bellies, fundamental rights under constant assault, crumbling systems, ever widening fissures between people, so much pain everywhere…
How can I – how dare I – spend my day building my silly little inconsequential business?
Downstairs I pour the hot coffee into my favourite pink travel mug. Add cream, sugar, find my way to my desk.
I start with my journal in hopes of getting back to that place where I started this morning. Three pages, keep the pen moving.
Across the pages I scrawl, why bother?
And that’s when the answer comes, loud and clear:
Because this is how we get free.
Go slow and stay steady,
Amanda Laird
Growth Marketing Strategist
Founder, Slow & Steady Studio
PS: I just added September Mini Map sessions to my calendar. This week a client told me just filling out the intake questionnaire gave her so much clarity, it was worth the cost alone!