I was in Nashville, TN, USA from September 20-26 for the meeting of our office, Young People’s Ministries. It was an awesome experience and helped me feel more connected with my colleagues and it put some better context to my work in the Philippines.
It was also energizing to be with young people from the United States and all over the world. Although, some of our African friends only joined us via Skype.
Yet, even if I had a great experience over all. When I got back to the Philippines on the evening of Sep 27th, I only had the 28th to rest. I had two speaking engagements on the 29th. It was a crazy Saturday for me.
And then came Sunday and Monday.
I. couldn’t. get. back. to. work.
And I wondered what was going on.
DISRUPTION!
My routine was broken; I was finding it difficult to go back to my working routine; Work is piling up. And I just can’t seem to get back on track!
Disruption.
That’s what happens when you’re thinking deeply and then something knocks you off balance. Like a phone call. Or a Skype message.
Or a nagging feeling that something’s not quite right.
When you’re disrupted, you can’t go on in the same way. You can’t continue your present line of thought!
But disruption can have a good effect, too. How?
Rearrange
When you’re disrupted, you need to rearrange–your thoughts, your strategies, and even your office! Because I couldn’t get back on my working rhythm, I ended up rearranging my home office.
Which is nice because it freed up lots of space. I got rid of clutter and I still am getting rid of several stuff. I’ve often reminded myself before–A clear desk means a clear mind. I need more “white spaces” so I can have more “processing” power and thought muscle for the things I care deeply about.
Refocus
When you are looking too closely at your work, or at the tasks and projects you have, you can miss the big picture and focus on the wrong things!
If you’re disrupted, you’re forced to change your focus. Kinda like a photograph where you blur the background on focus on the subject of a photo. Or blur the subject and focus on the background (or foreground).
Disruption also allows you to think about your present situation and initiates you to a new path, or a re-commitment to your path.
As for me, I came to realize that some of the projects I accepted are not in line with my calling and my path. If I were to have a great impact in my area of influence, I need to be an expert on something. And that means aligning all my projects into my area of expertise.
I don’t claim to have figured this out. But I’m working on it. That’s something I’m gonna have to write about in another post.
Relaunch
Disruption, however, doesn’t really stop at that. Rearranging. Refocusing. These are great things. But you and me need to do something else. That’s to RELAUNCH!
Recommit.
Start doing something.
Press on. Move forward.
What does that mean for me, then?
It means refocusing this blog and my other projects, too! Moving forward, I’ll be writing mainly about two things–youth leadership, youth empowerment, and Social Media.
Have you been disrupted lately? How did you deal with it? How can you benefit from that?
Image credit: vi.sualize.us/disrupt;