Motivation, Resilience and Relevancy

Autumn is a Second Spring Where Every Leaf is a Flower.

There was a time not so long ago when I dreaded the autumn clean up. Yes there was the kaleidoscope of colours to admire but less so when the leaves constantly piled up and the raking endless in what seemed to be the reluctant aftermath to a lazy summer. It was a time when I found the leaves of autumn were at their most beautiful when they were been raked by someone else.

Nowadays as I age and my years mellow, I rake over the autumn leaves but with a sense of purpose as I equally rake over my reflections. Of all the seasons there is something about autumn. It serves as a reminder not just to the process of seasonal change but also for survival and renewal.

During the summer months deciduous plants steadily resupply chlorophyll to the leaves through photosynthesis. This all changes with the arrival of autumn when the days are shorter and nights are cooler. Chlorophyll production decreases, allowing other pigments present in the leaf to come through. As autumn sets in, deciduous plants start losing their leaves in a process called abscission. Abscission is about conserving resources to survive the winter months and reducing the potential risk of attack by insects. Here the leaves fall away as their purpose is no longer needed. The option to repair leaves and keep them functional is more costly than just losing and regrowing them… Forget automation and artificial intelligence for this is the ultimate disruption to nature’s photosynthesis supply chain!?

Beyond the cosmetics and the chemistry of the colour change, autumn showcases the principles of giving back. That is, for all the nutrients drawn from the earth during spring and summer, autumn is when a deciduous plant gives back all its foliage as fertiliser for future seasons. This “giving back” is an undocumented partnership that makes autumn a simple, humble, and unconditional process.

As creatures of habit it is so easy for us humans to sail through the seasons unaware of the constant change taking place around us. Yet for all things deciduous, I ponder beyond nature’s disruption as I rake those autumn leaves… What can I drop that I no longer need? What can I draw upon for my own seasonal change, survival and renewal? How can I “give back” simply, humbly, and unconditionally to support and strengthen those around me?

When I look across my network of work colleagues, both permanent and on contract, there are those who chart a course of action to navigate their way through the work challenges we all face. On the flip side, I speak to those who are displaced and struggle to secure sustainable and meaningful work. At times, the contrast could not be any starker in what boils down to a simple question of: motivation, resilience and relevance.

If I can be motivated, I can focus on what keeps me resilient. If I can be resilient, I can focus on what keeps me relevant. If I can be relevant, I can focus on what keeps me motivated. If I can manage all three, then engagement and employment will follow in due course.

Motivation is the driver to be curious. Resilience is the driver to be flexible. Relevance is the driver to be mindful. I know I can ill afford to be complicit in complacency and as I get older I too need to be deciduous and conserve energy.

As I rake and contemplate, my council green bin fills. Humility reminds me not to rest on my laurels. I must do everything within my span of influence to stay motivated, resilient, relevant and employable in order to survive and to renew. Every disruption that crosses my chosen path creates as many opportunities as it does threats. For each and every leaf I rake there is an opportunity.

Along the way I must scratch the back of my peers – to help them unconditionally in the same manner as I would like them to help me when I need it. I must make this my constant just as night follows day and autumn follows summer... to give back to the earth as the earth gives to the tree. At the end of the day the raking might be done but the leaves and the opportunities keep coming.