The Office Warrior

As much as I want to blog every day when the ideas are fresh, time prevails and there is never enough of it. Thursday I had an overwhelming feeling of power. Do you ever get those moments? When you truly feel like you are fully in control of the world and your destiny and any doomsayers better damn well get the heck out of your way. I was and still am feeling that. I honestly felt like a warrior at work, like there was all sort of butts to be kicked and I was wearing the right kind of boots.

I switched careers in March of this year and went from doing technical electrical/lighting design in an office that literally sucked the soul and life out of me for 8 hours every day. I would wake up in the morning full of dread and despair, knowing that I would be counting down the seconds until I could get out of there and regain my sanity and sense of self worth. There is nothing so disheartening than having a great idea for making something better or work more efficiently and nobody taking you seriously. Heck, when your emails aren't even responded to and the person in question is about 10 feet from you and runs a company of 6, some questions come boiling to the surface about how seriously one is being take.

Through what seemed like a most terrible ordeal and situation, life actually came up roses and I took a job doing marketing and merchandising. I hadn't studied this in school but that's not to say that life experience hadn't taught me a thing or two. I learned right away that I had a gift for the types of projects that I was given to managed. I was also given a lot of rope. I did not hang myself with it. I instituted programs and ran them with an iron fist in a velvet glove. I feel like I have the right personality for what I am doing now. My compulsive organization and detailed lists are coming in very handy when I have 30 things on the go. I get to give presentations and be the boss of many of these projects, which I am really enjoying.

Honestly, though some weeks are draining, this week, I felt like a warrior. Like I could do anything and nothing was going to stand in my way. Executing plans for a successful trade show in another province that I wouldn't be attending? No problem. Bring it on! Design some seriously fresh and modern tshirts? Yup, hand that over and watch me nail it. I definitely began to picture myself as Leonidas, the hero-king of Sparta from the movie 300. Commanding his troops and walking head on into battle with an army that trusted his instincts and will unquestionably.

King Leonidas from the movie "300"

Of course, I wouldn't be dressed quite the same but I've been feeling superhero strong and powerful lately. Mentally, I am on my game and feel sharp and prepared. Physically, I've been feeling really good this week as well. I've been eating pretty clean and I have been getting to my gym classes (I prefer the weight lifting ones) and running on the treadmill for longer. Having an hour-long gym session where you leave sweaty, muscles shaky but tight, and physically drained would have some people nauseous at the thought. To me, this idea makes me smile. There is such a thing as "good pain". There's a high that comes from surviving the physical intensity of bringing your body to its maximum capacity and then breaking through that barrier and pushing past it. To me, that's what I would call the "warrior state". You feel like your body could do anything and your mind starts imaging yourself as the stunt double in an action-packed summer blockbuster.

If you have never reached this mind-body state of power and clarity, I recommend introducing weight-lifting and running into your lifestyle. Feeling strong doesn't just carry over into your physical life but raises your confidence in everything else that you do. Your training will help you intensely focus on tasks and projects with calm sharpness of a sniper about to pull the trigger. The discipline gained from pushing your body beyond where your brain would tell you to stop will instill the same "take no prisoners" attitude in every other aspect of life. Even how you train yourself to breath can help in every day situations of stress and conflict.

My recommendation for the day. Get thee to a gym. No whining, no excuses, no talking yourself out of it. Walk in with confidence and visualize yourself as a warrior. Treat your body with respect and discipline and it will reward you in ways you cannot imagine.

Show no fear. You CAN do it.