Flowing in Your Zone of Genius

Now that the world's most famous ball has dropped at Times Square and we are officially into the new year, I am excited to kick-off my 2022 LinkedIn journey by launching my new monthly newsletter, "Reflections by Anthony Sledge."

In this newsletter, I will be providing a monthly reflection on various topics, including mindfulness, thought-provoking conversations, and inspiring moments that I've had throughout the month, and even spotlighting some of you and our interactions.

So with that in mind, let's jump right into Issue #1, Flowing in Your Zone of Genius, which I wrote early this morning on a foggy and rainy day in New York City.

I began the first day of January by waking up to the soothing sounds of rain falling from the sky, with the tiny raindrops collectively rushing down the outside of my bedroom bay window, making a noise that sounded something like drip-drop, drip-drop.

The second I opened my brown eyes, a ray of sunlight beaming through my off-white wooden blinds flashed into my eyes, which, funnily enough, motivated me to wake up fully, thus leaping out of bed right away!

As soon as my feet touched the floor, I recall the dark cherry hardwood floors feeling rather chilly, so I quickly located and slipped on my Chestnut Ugg slippers and slid into the master bathroom to get washed up.

After carefully shaving my face and taking a nice hot shower, which energized me even more, I slowly dried off in my dark burgundy soft plush Polo robe, slipped on a navy blue and white Puma jogging suit, and yelled out, "Anthony, let's go WIN the day!"

Once dressed and now feeling invigorated, I walked into the living room to find my favorite meditation spot. After landing at the said favorite spot, I sat down quietly and got into a yoga-like position, and began to meditate for the next twenty-three minutes.?

While meditating, I could feel the universe's vibration throughout my body, so much so that it felt like its rhythm was touching my soul!

Then, all of a sudden, I heard a lovely voice in my head, whispering words of hope and optimism into my ear, followed by a message about the importance of flowing in one's "Zone of Genius" each and every day.

Immediately after meditating, I dashed over to my home office, genuinely inspired by the message, turned on my Microsoft Surface Pro, opened my electronic journal program, and got ready to begin capturing my thoughts while I was still in a state of flow!

Next, and without any hesitation, I started typing in those inspiring words that had just magically appeared in my mind before allowing them to fade away.

Please allow me to add, journaling my ideas at that very moment was vital because experience has taught me that thoughts are fleeting, so it's wise to have the discipline to document them consistently.?

Once I unloaded my thoughts into my Surface Pro with the cool-looking poppy red Bluetooth keyboard, I rushed outside to partake in my daily morning run, the first of the new year, and proceeded to jog while still thinking about what I had just typed.

Fast forward twenty-five minutes later, I found myself relaxing near the pier, illustrated above, admiring the beauty of nature, soon to be awestruck by the spectacular view of a gaggle of geese floating gracefully in the chilly water of the Hudson River.

Moreover, I quickly became enchanted with the magnificence of the imagery, and luckily for me, I ended up drifting back into a meditative state!

Now fully absorbed into this moment and all it had to offer, I began to concentrate on the geese floating peacefully in the cold river, as shown in the picture above, while continuing to embrace my thoughts with eagerness.

Before I knew it, my mind started to compare what the geese were doing instinctively to an individual naturally flowing in their Zone of Genius.?

What's more, I then spotted two birds gliding in the sky and watched them with admiration, landing onto the pier softly, which I also found similar to flowing in your Zone of Genius, metaphorically speaking, of course.

Check out the below pic for your viewing pleasure, and I trust you will feel like you were here with me watching these two birds flying from the sky and gently landing on the pier.?

With that said, I now feel compelled to ask you, did you hear the beautiful chirping sound the birds were making as you were looking at this photo?

All kidding aside, as most of us begin this year in the relentless pursuit of our goals and fulfillment, I encourage each and every one of you, including myself, to fly off into 2022 with a sense of purpose and focus, ready to navigate through life and all of its headwinds and tailwinds gracefully, just like a bird flying effortlessly in the sky.

In other words, let's all make a conscious effort to flow in our Zone of Genius as much as possible in the new year. Let's make it happen!

To be clear, I am talking about embracing the things that come most naturally to you and using those gifts 2 serve and impact others positively and respectfully.

BTW - If you're wondering why I used the #2 instead of the word 'to' in the above sentence, it was because I saw the number 2 in the middle-right side of the below image and couldn't resist making this unorthodox substitution.

Pretty clever, I must say so myself, and I bet I just made you look for and find the #2 in the below photo. LOL!

Well, friends, that does it for the first issue of my monthly newsletter, "Reflections by Anthony Sledge."

It is now time for me to jump on the New York City ferry and cruise into my 2022 journey with thoughts of abundance, optimism, a growth mindset, and the Captain of my Ship, full steam ahead!

And, with that above sentence just being read by you, I will graciously conclude this article by saying, Bon Voyage, to everyone in my LinkedIn community. ???

Share your thoughts in the comments section, and have a fabulous New Year. ?? Let's go!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my newsletter.

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• Twitter: @Anthony_Sledge
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