“All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

PICTURE THIS:  It’s EARLY morning.  You can feel the calm of being the only person awake.  Then . . . BOOM!  A door SLAMS open.  Foot steps run down the stairs at fire drill speed.

The stillness of the morning has DISAPPEARED faster than Jonathan Papelban’s fastball.  The kids are AWAKE.  They decide to start their day tackling each other on the tile floor.

CHANGE ON THE FLY:  The project I was working on IMMEDIATELY gets overwhelmed by the ENERGY and DEMANDS the kids bring.

The CHAOS has begun. Time to SWITCH gears and get the kids off to school.

Ten minutes ago I was searching through customer emails.  Now I am “in search of” everyone’s sneakers.  (HINT:  One pair are usually in the garage).

ON CUE:   At the same time, my iPhone starts BUZZING like a college freshman at their 1st Rave.   An endless stream of texts, emails, & voice messages start to attack.  Every few seconds another “ping” comes looking for attention.

MY STRUGGLE:  I have struggled with this transition.  The point where unfinished work crashes into the needs of a young family.  It has taken me time to LEARN how to REFOCUS my attention.  Making the switch from WORK to FAMILY is not easy for me.  My mind needs time to TRANSITION before my body will follow.

THE MIDDLE:  At times I find myself in the “in between”.  Do you know the feeling?  You are not fully present for either WORK or FAMILY.

I SUCK in that zone.  This is where AVERAGE kicks my ass.

WALK THE PATH:  I have found a way to make that transition.  This IDEA works because it is both PHYSICAL and MENTAL.  It replaces CHAOS with CALM.  It helps me reorient my mind and switch my FOCUS.

I take a WALK.

BENEFITS:  The benefits of spending 5 minutes walking outside are ZEN LIKE.

• My mind clears.
• Ideas flow.
• Focus emerges.

Tension disappears like Criss Angel on stage in Vegas.

UP UP & AWAY:  Clark Kent used a phone booth to change into Superman. I walk down a path to TRANSFORM my focus from KIDS to CUSTOMERS.

THE LONG WAY:  There is a PATH that runs around the grounds of one of my kid’s schools.  It’s the LONG WAY back to your car. But it’s my FAST WAY to make that mental TRANSITION from HOME to WORK.

TAKEAWAY:  No matter the weather.   No matter the DEMANDS of your day.  Go outside.  Take a BRISK walk.

• Look at the nature around you.
• Feel the ground under your feet.
• Notice the wind in your face.
• Be present in the moment.

These few minutes will RESET your mind.  This will ADJUST your focus.

You can WALK AWAY from average and head down the path to REMARKABLE.

– Joe Ciccarone

“The Path”