[Busy But Good] Inspiration
Finally, you’re catching up with friends you haven’t seen in a while and one of them inevitably asks, “So! How’ve you been?” And you reply:
“Busy, but good!”
And then it’s generally onto small talk about...wait. Back up.
What exactly does ‘Busy, but good!’ mean? Is being ‘busy’ in fact a good thing? Has being busy made you happier? Brought you closer to your core values? Or just…busier? I can see it now:
Here lays Karl Stelter. He was a pretty busy guy.
And all my busy friends would be on their cell phones busily nodding along.
Maybe busy isn’t so good.
My ‘Life in That Moment’
A few months prior to this, I was hired on to film a set of four commercials that I felt could be a breakthrough in my career as a director. I was PUMPED.
I dove into work headfirst, shouting over my shoulder to my wife ‘I’ll be back sometime sooooooon’ SPLASH.
If I wasn’t working with you, I wasn’t talking to you. Two and a half months later it was editing crunch-time, and I had yet to come up for air.
‘Manufacturing’ Time
Two days prior to the deadline of all deadlines, my client mentioned casually, “Hey, we’re premiering your commercials privately at the Hilton Penthouse Suite and I’d like you to be there. If you come, you can film anything you want after the party’s over.”
After a quick google search, I said ‘hell yes!’ — and needed something to shoot. In two days. With major edit revisions and approvals pending. Go.
Busy But Good
I used to call my Mom everyday, just to say hi. I used to play tennis regularly. I used to go for walks with my wife.
And I thought, “What if this wasn’t just temporary? What if I slipped into a cycle of busy-ness (and financial success?!) that simply became…normal?”
I would be alone.
Continued in Part II ‘Challenges’ and Part III ‘Premiering Fears’
