Words to live by: heading towards me, 2018.

Leigh-on-Sea, by Dan Rubin.

This post came to me as I was running home during a jog along the seafront. I often find that my subconscious delivers clarity when I’m running; on this occasion it was as if these words blew off the estuary and into my path.

Arriving home, I straightaway grabbed a pen and jotted my thoughts down onto paper. Because, right here, right now, I realised this is the stuff that really matters. These are words to live by:

1. I can’t do just one thing at work (I tried); I like to juggle more than one role, wear more than one hat. That’s what I’ve done since I walked out of the school gates, and that’s what I’m going to continue doing.
2. I work for myself rather than for an organisation. But that doesn’t mean I’m trying to monetise every part of every day. Because what’s the point of that? This is my life not a business model.
3. And why am I not trying to squeeze every ounce out of every waking hour? Because I know what happens when you don’t look after your health, when you ignore the warning signs (trust me).
4. I know I’m not for everyone. Sometimes I get odd looks when I explain what my Fuel Safari is, and how it involves walking around London’s back streets. That’s fine. So if you find this post a bit too schmaltzy, and it’s not for you, hit the ‘unfollow’ button. That’s fine too.
5. I work hard. I push myself. But if I’m working at home and the tide is high, the most important part of my day will be disappearing to the beach near where I live. Because that swim, that moment when I plunge through the water, that’s what freedom feels like.
6. This year I hit fifty. I feel more comfortable in my skin than ever before. That’s the good thing about getting older. More confident, more open, nothing to hide away.
7. I’m a dad. My kids are growing fast. Driving in the car yesterday I looked across at the passenger seat and saw my eldest son through fresh eyes. Thirteen this month. Wow. Suddenly he looked so different, so tall. Not a kid. A young man. That gave me a lump in my throat. Yesterday afternoon I’d decided that work could wait and my son would come first. I took him to my favourite coffee shop for a hot chocolate. When we returned and couldn’t find a parking space on our street, I didn’t stress about it. I joked that it was fate telling us to spend more time together. So we went for a drive along the seafront and sat and had an ice cream. That was probably the best decision I’d made in a long time.
8. It’s the same reason I found myself sitting at the table playing Lego with my youngest son. Soon he won’t want to play Lego, soon I won’t walk him to school any more. So I put my phone on airplane mode, we got the Lego box out and made an airport terminal. Just the two of us. No interruptions.
9. I’ve been working for myself since 2000. But after all this time I’m not trying to build a big business, I’m not looking to hire lots of people. I’m happy keeping it lean, working with my wife, staying flexible. There’s more freedom that way.
10. I don’t measure success by £. I measure it by my Good Times, those daily experiences inside and outside work, that make me feel me.
11. I like trying my hand at new things, adding new strings to my bow. But I’ll only ever play where I play best. If you hire me to deliver a presentation, I can only do that about something I’m 100% passionate about. Don’t change the subject of my talk a week before. I won’t stand up and talk about something I don’t know.
12. I’m not a maestro with Adobe tools, I can’t draw very well. But I would still describe myself as ‘creative.’ And I know I’m the best version of myself when I bring that creativity to my life.
13. All my life I dreamed of getting a dog. But I kept saying it wasn’t the right time. Last year I finally got one. All I can tell you is, I should’ve got one earlier. You need to listen to your dreams.
14. I try not to rush anymore. I always used to rush around, arriving just in time for meetings. Always looking at my watch, breaking into a quick step to get from A to B in time. Now I get the train thirty minutes before I need to. So when I arrive in the city, I have time to sit, think and reflect - getting fuelled up for the day ahead. Giving rituals like the first coffee of the day the time it deserves. It’s better that way.
15. I’ll always be flexible. I like going where the water flows. But still, the journey has to take me towards me. Like my seafront run. That’s how I stay on course.

Ian Sanders | talks. workshops. fuel safaris. storytelling.