“The bad news is you’re falling through the air, nothing to hang on to, no parachute. The good news is there’s no ground. Delusion is trying to grasp for something solid in this fleeting world.”
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Insights Into Practices: Retire Now
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Two Of My Favorite Quotes
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What I’m Reading
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Half-day Retreat – October 13th
A successful and skilled business leader that I am coaching recently expressed that he was feeling weary and stressed. He said that he was beginning to think about taking a 3 – 6 month sabbatical at some future time. Then he said he is eagerly imagining retiring at some much later date. Neither of these plans seemed realistic or relevant to his current experience.
“What if you don’t wait? What if you take sabbatical now, or even better, retire now!” I suggested.
He smiled, a little. I could see his shoulders drop, and some energy enter his body.
“Why wait? Explore this week, approaching each day of your work as though it is part of your sabbatical or part of your “early retirement.”
I could see more energy, relaxing, and a big smile.
It is easy to feel as though we are the victims of our circumstances. It is easy to define ourselves, define our lives by putting everything into separate categories and boxes — work or play, relaxed or stressed, calm or active, easy or difficult, work or retire.
What might retiring now look like? Explore infusing each day with a little more spaciousness, more enjoyment. Try on approaching each day with a greater sense of curiosity and appreciation. It might look like asking questions including:
What’s possible?
How can I be of service?
What most brings me alive at work?
I’m drawn to this quote by Chögyam Trungpa. His words cut through tendencies to grasp onto what is known, to safety and security, even when holding on limits or imprisons us.
“The bad news is you’re falling through the air, nothing to hang on to, no parachute.
The good news is there’s no ground.
Delusion is trying to grasp for something solid in this fleeting world.”
A core aspect of mindful work or mindful leadership is loosening or letting go of these categories and definitions that can narrow our choices and take away our freedom and power.
Retiring now doesn’t mean avoiding, denying, or suppressing challenges, pains, and difficulties. Be real. Notice your energy, your feelings, and whatever story you are telling yourself about your work or your life.
Then, try on a different story, a new context.
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(One of my first jobs: learning to farm with horses, at Zen Center’s Green Gulch Farm.)
Practices:
What might retiring now look like for you? What stops you and what supports you?
Explore journal writing with these prompts:
What am I doing with this life?
What am I doing with these fleeting days?
Retire Now; Never Retire; Just Enjoy Your Retirement
People sometimes ask me when I plan to retire. One of my responses is that I feel as though I “retired” when I was 22 years old. Though I’ve worked my entire adult life, my work has been integrated with my values and my heart. I don’t have plans for stopping.
And, when it comes to actual retirement, it can be somewhat of a trap. Here is a diagram from a recent Wall Street Journal article about how most people spend their retirement. I was struck by the number of hours people spend watching television and how few hours are spent socializing and communicating. Retirement itself can become somewhat of a narrow box.
On the other hand, I know many people who love being retired, through finding a great combination of letting go, meaningful relationships, and useful activities. Someone once asked Shunryu Suzuki why we practice. His response, “So you will be happy in your old age.”
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Source: WSJ
Some Favorite Quotes
“If you learn to enjoy waiting, you don’t have to wait to enjoy.”
– Kaz Tanahashi
(This quote from my friend Kaz comes in handy in traffic, on lines, and in many daily situations.)
“The most important point is to establish yourself in a true sense, without establishing yourself on delusion. And yet we cannot live or practice without delusion. Delusion is necessary, but delusion is not something on which you can establish yourself. It is like a stepladder…you don’t stay on the stepladder.
– Shunryu Suzuki
What I’m Reading
The Signal and the Noise: Why Some Predictions Fail, But Some Don’t – An exploration of probability and uncertainty that feels extremely relevant and useful in many parts of daily life.
Half Day Sitting, In-Person and Online – Sunday October 13th
9:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. in Mill Valley.
I really like half day retreats, where there is time for some extended meditation periods, some walking, and time to process with a small community. Then, time to enjoy a Sunday afternoon.
Warmest wishes,
Marc