Hurry up and ...

Yesterday, I ran into Eric Chand , an industry colleague from the past. After formalities and being reacquainted, Eric reminded me of how much he enjoyed reading my blogs, which provide glimpses into my personal life, principles, and values.

Eric , thank you for sharing your thoughts with me yesterday. It sparked a renewed interest in my love for writing. You inspired me to revisit my old blog posts and reshare them on LinkedIn, and to start writing again. I am forever grateful, my friend.

Here is a post from December 13, 2012, titled Hurry up and.... Once on proverbial paper, this post changed how I approached balancing my personal and professional lives and it helped me look deeply into what type of a parent and human being I wanted to be. It eventually led me to becoming a yogi and a daily meditator, and to find peace amidst chaotic routines influenced by external factors.

Since then, Coronavirus Pandemic changed our behaviours and forced many of us to spend time together under quarantine, which eventually led many people to evaluate their work habits and value "time-spent-together" (think of the global push for remote and hybrid work models, quiet quitting, mass resignations, etc.). Certainly, I am glad that I began my journey on the family-first path a decade earlier.

I hope this original post, albeit old and yet relevant, will positively impact you as it did me and other readers. Please feel free to share you comments below and I promise to respond. Original post can be read here .

A bit of a context: My daughter was seven and my son was a year old when I wrote this blog post. It was a time when my career trajectory and salary were pointing upward, which resulted in me putting unfair pressure on my children due to work-related commitments. I wanted to change that for my children, so hopefully they will do the same if and when they choose to have their own child(ren).

Hurry up and...

Being 7 years old is not easy. Case in point (I am generalizing here but I’m sure most of us deal with the lack of hours in a day in a similar fashion):

• Children have to work with their parents’ / guardians’ (hereafter parents) schedules. For example, school doesn’t start until 8:40 but most kids are dropped off at a pre-school care at least an hour or so earlier so they can be walked to school.?“Hurry up and wake up” parents say.
• In a mad dash to get everything in order for the day, most kids are handed a quick breakfast, which they end up eating on their own without anyone to talk to. In the meantime, parents are busy preparing lunches while listening to the 24/7 traffic update hoping that their commute will be easier than yesterday.?“Hurry up and eat” parents say.
• Backpack on their backs, kids are given a quick kiss on the cheek and handed over the pre-school staff. Quick waves of a hand and off they go. They’re now our education systems problem… at least for the next 8 to 10 hours. Phew!?To the other motorists, “hurry up and drive faster” parents say.
• Although school ends at 2:40, most kids don’t get home until 5:30 or 6:00 at night. Thank goodness for the after-school care. Kids are greeted with their parents’ tired smiles at the door when it’s time for pick-up.?“Hurry up and let's go; we still have to make dinner” parents say.
• Finally, kids are home. But the pressure doesn’t end there. Wash your hands! Empty your backpack! Why didn’t you finish your lunch? Do you have any homework? What do you mean you’re not hungry? What do you mean so-and-so was mean to you? You have to toughen up!?Now “hurry up and get ready for your basketball and soccer practices; just double up your uniforms so all you have to do is take the top jersey off” parents say.
• Dinner is prepared quickly without any consultation with the kids. They are simply involved with the consumption of whatever it is that is placed in front of them.?“Hurry up and eat; we’re running late” parents say.
• Repeat the last step: Finally, kids are home. Oh, my gosh! It’s 8:30 PM.?“Hurry up and take a shower; it’s way past your bedtime” parents say.

“I’m sure glad Thursday is over” kids say. Or at least I think they do.

And then we wonder why our kids don’t spend any time with us when they grow-up.

Thanks for reading,

Armin

#shiftingparadigm #shatteringthemyth #reimagined #scalablehr #inspiredrecruiter #candidateagent ?#worklifebalance #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealth #mentalhealthawareness #yoga #yogi #meditation #family #familyfirst #peoplefirst

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