Y'all. I have a confession to make. I don't feel very women's empowermenty. Last year, I organized WEViz (women's empowerment visualization event) & this year, my plate is so full, I couldn't pull it off. I'm behind on a lot of stuff. These grand plans I had are not materializing.
I mourned WEViz for a little bit. How can I make a difference if I'm not contributing or facilitating?
I recently read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert and one of the concepts in the book is that ideas can pass on to others as well as committing to and nurturing them. And accepting/embracing that concept is like acknowledging that you did what you could while the idea was in your court. So when the idea is in someone else's court, it's their turn to commit fully to it. This concept really helped me get through the 'why can't I get my shit together and dedicate the time to get this done?' to 'yes! the message/awareness is still out there!' through others (like Data Dare) challenging folks to do women's empowerment vizzes. I want to participate and show my support and contribute to the Data Dare. But...when?
There are so many things I want to do.
If I take a look at how I spend my time, I can chunk it into major categories:
To me, it becomes a question of: am I okay with it?
With respect to WEViz, yes. Awareness is being raised by others. I'm good with that.
At the end of the day, I have to make choices. What do I prioritize? Right now, building my business and coaching my clients is a top priority. Training for my fitness competition is a top priority. Spending time with family is a top priority. Contributing to the Tableau/Dataviz community is important. Perhaps I can't do everything I want. As long as I meet a certain (unknown) threshold for dataviz, then I feel okay.
So as I reflect on this International Women's Day and my two hour commute home (which is where I wrote most of this with my car in park on New York Ave in DC), the fact that I ate dinner, kissed the kids, & went right back out to the gym, I thought of the following:
I can't do it all but as long as I'm happy overall, then it's all good.
I mourned WEViz for a little bit. How can I make a difference if I'm not contributing or facilitating?
I recently read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert and one of the concepts in the book is that ideas can pass on to others as well as committing to and nurturing them. And accepting/embracing that concept is like acknowledging that you did what you could while the idea was in your court. So when the idea is in someone else's court, it's their turn to commit fully to it. This concept really helped me get through the 'why can't I get my shit together and dedicate the time to get this done?' to 'yes! the message/awareness is still out there!' through others (like Data Dare) challenging folks to do women's empowerment vizzes. I want to participate and show my support and contribute to the Data Dare. But...when?
There are so many things I want to do.
If I take a look at how I spend my time, I can chunk it into major categories:
- Work (9 hours)
- Sleep (6 hours)
- Commute (3 hours)
- Getting me & kids ready for work (1.5 hours)
- Dinner/family time/baths (1.5 hours)
- Life coaching (1 hour)
- Workout (1 hour)
To me, it becomes a question of: am I okay with it?
With respect to WEViz, yes. Awareness is being raised by others. I'm good with that.
At the end of the day, I have to make choices. What do I prioritize? Right now, building my business and coaching my clients is a top priority. Training for my fitness competition is a top priority. Spending time with family is a top priority. Contributing to the Tableau/Dataviz community is important. Perhaps I can't do everything I want. As long as I meet a certain (unknown) threshold for dataviz, then I feel okay.
So as I reflect on this International Women's Day and my two hour commute home (which is where I wrote most of this with my car in park on New York Ave in DC), the fact that I ate dinner, kissed the kids, & went right back out to the gym, I thought of the following:
I can't do it all but as long as I'm happy overall, then it's all good.
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