Free as a bird.
It sounds kind of nice. But really, it’s not likely we’d enjoy this utopian state for too long, and it certainly wouldn’t gel too well with society or the culture at large.
Whether it’s gravity, paying taxes, or how you choose to manage your email inbox, boundaries and constraints have a huge impact on how we live, and what we can create or get done.
We can either “create” boundaries, or we can “relax” boundaries – both of these can be powerful
Here are some smaller boundaries, which can have a larger impact, that may be worth considering, or re-considering:
- “Don’t talk to strangers” vs. waving first, or saying hello first
- How frequently you check your email or phone
- Allocated time for hands-on, non-digital, offline creativity
- “Don’t mess around” vs. dedicating time to “play”
- Continual work vs. Pomodoro method or time blocking
- Outsourcing your lunch vs choosing to cook your meals
- How you choose to engage with social media
- Whether or not you own a TV
- Choosing to raise your hand vs. sitting back
Sometimes it’s powerful to create boundaries.
Other times it’s effective to relax them.
In both cases, the practice of observing the boundaries that we do have in place is important.
