powerpointed

A hundred years ago, I used to work in the city. In a big, tall building. Where everyone would arrive in droves off crowded trains and trams [heads down/eyes averted] swipe themselves in, huddle into air.sucked elevators and shuffle off at look.the.same.floors. Everyone seemed to wear grey. No matter how hard I looked, I struggled to find joy; my soul was being drained right out of me.

As much as I knew that I was working with some fabulous people who were doing some great work, the environment was just not one that suited me; I was really unhappy. And so I started to develop a Get Away Plan. I had no concrete ideas how I wanted my life to look but I had a few non-negotiable details.

Firstly, I wanted to be able to wear clothes that made me happy. That might sound like a small and perhaps shallow detail, but for me, beautiful vintage dresses in fantastic colours are a creative expression, they lift me up. I also wanted to work in a room of my own, surrounded by my books and pictures, in a space that was light and warm and welcoming. Thirdly, I wanted to be able to have flexibility. I wanted to be able to swim at lunch or meet my beautiful friend and her newborn bundle for an afternoon coffee in the park and work around it, without someone looking over my shoulder. And finally, I wanted to escape PowerPoint.

This morning, I realised that it has all come together. I woke up and went for a run, in the freezing cold [just as the sun was coming up]. I came home to coffee and muesli. I showered and put on a favourite paisley dress with chunky scarf. I came into my new office, set up just the way I like and I started work: tweeting; blogging; reasearching; planning. This afternoon, I will work with (beautiful!inspiring) clients before heading to a movie. And then I will come back and work on a project that I’m developing with a couple of other like.minded.creatures. My life is really good and it looks, in those essential ways, exactly as I had planned. I feel satisfied and inspired and (at the risk of sounding naff) free, just like I had originally intended.

It is really, really [can I say REALLY!] important when designing your life to get clear on the essential details (even if they’re things other folk would say were dumb), to focus on how you want to feel and then, when it all comes to fruition, to celebrate [no shifting the goal posts folks!]

[love.love.]