“Stop measuring days by degree of productivity and start experiencing them by degree of presence.” – Alan Watts

That quote gets me every time. In a way, this whole blog could be narrowed down to that one sentence. Where do we find satisfaction and meaning? It's right here, in real-time, in the experience of the moments we have throughout our day.

One of the most common criticisms I have of myself, and I hear other entrepreneurs and leaders say about themselves, falls in the category of productivity. It shows up in comments like, “I did not get done what I wanted or needed to today.” or “I need to get more focused, organized, disciplined, etc.” Getting enough done, being more productive feels like a battle and something that needs to be fixed if we're going to get ahead or be successful.

A couple of weekends ago, I was with a friend on the coast. We were talking about our lives, our businesses, and a recent experience we had together. I shared with him how I often get caught up in my mind accessing and focusing on what I need to do to improve myself or a situation. I have a habit of focusing on what I could have done better or what still needs improving. Pretty soon, I’m tweaking, critiquing, and a bit on my case about it. While this doesn’t seem to derail my self-esteem or keep me from engaging, it does have an effect and can leave me in a feeling of not good enough or not quite right.

During a recent group call, each participant shared updates on their businesses since the last time we had met. As the sharing went on, I could see genuine excitement for one another. In the last two weeks, each person had made progress. Some of them had insights that helped them get more clarity or step into their authenticity more powerfully.