Notes from Finnentrop
March 22nd, 2010 by admin
Dear Friends,
Over the course of the last 11 years I have moved three times. First from the left side of the Rhine River into Düsseldorf, where I worked in international advertising from 1991 till 2005. Then I moved from Düsseldorf to a village closer to the Dutch border shortly after I went into business for myself in 2006. Now my partner and I and our two wayward dachshunds have moved to village of barely 200 souls in an area of German called the Sauerland.
Talk about contrast!
Like most days, today I spent about four hours working here at the computer. Then I took a break to eat and headed out with the pups. When returning from my walk I waved to one of my new neighbors. I know that he is alternative non-medical practitioner and that he lives here for part of the week, and for part of the week in Cologne. I hooked the pups’ leashes to a fence post before going to get a cart to bring in a load of wood to keep our tiled oven stoked. When I got back outside I saw he had wandered over to our kitchen door to introduce himself. Our cordial conversation soon turned to the personal and professional advantages of being able to combine city- and country-living. How - especially as we grow older - it offers the perfect combination of excitement and relaxation; activity and rest.
While we were talking I realized once again how much my life has evolved since I left advertising in 2005.
For years I had taken for granted that my life’s fast pace was the only way to live. The adrenalin rush I experienced rushing from one meeting or plane or train to another was like oxygen - it kept me feeling alive and excited about what I was doing. Of course there were (important!) segments of my life I neglected, and in the beginning it seemed well worth the sacrifice. Almost everyone I associated with was on the same drug. There was hardly a private conversation that didn’t quickly shift back to problems with this project or issues with that client. Seldom was there time to read and discuss anything “just because” with a stack of storyboards, AdVantage and Nielsen reports waiting impatiently on the corner of my desk. Rare the evening when I made it to one of my children’s school plays or other activities - or even just dinner - on time.
Later the deficits this imbalanced lifestyle caused became as obvious: to me as they had been to my family and friends for some time. Especially once the buzz of the business had worn off, and my physical and mental batteries became more and more depleted. I didn’t find it easy to change gears or make the necessary course corrections. Eventually I did, though; both more slowly and much faster than I ever expected. It took at least 24 months for my point of reference to shift from my former lifestyle and center on the lifestyle I am establishing for myself.
Now I get an unexpected creative rush when I turn around and take a few minutes to look up into the hills and just tune myself into the silence while walking through the woods with the dogs. When I need inspiration while writing blog entries or answering emails, I simply look out our kitchen window and spend a few minutes watching the birds raid our outdoor feeder or see if any new snowbells have pushed their way through the soggy soil. Or I turn off my laptop and take a long, hot bath and read something that doesn’t have anything at all to do with work.
Standing there across from my neighbor this afternoon - wearing baggy terry-cloth jogging pants, muddy trainers, no make-up and a bright bandanna holding back my hair - I smiled to myself to think how former clients would react if they had ever seen me like this. Yes, my life has come a long way from back-to-back meetings, tailored suits and impossible deadlines. More importantly, it’s come a long way from being externally - as opposed to internally - driven. Yes, I still have (and need!) clients. Yes, my clients’ challenges become my challenges as we both put our brain-power to solution finding. But the freedom and energy I feel at being able to work on something that feeds into my passion for people and their professional development is satisfying in a way I don’t think I could have fully imagined 11 years ago.
Trina
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