Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Saying Yes to Reality

Week 2
More and more, I say yes to the givens of human life. Everything changes and ends; things will not always go according to plan; life is not always fair or pain-free; and people are not always loving, honest, generous, or loyal.
I got some news today that was disappointing. I've been working on an event for a client; partnering with someone I've never met on it who was going to do this event, but couldn't do it alone. We decided to partner up and have been working on it for a few months. Granted, we haven't put 100% into it, yet, but had time.

I got a call today that the client wants to back out. She has some other big things going on and feels like we're up against too many deadlines now. I talked with her for 40 minutes, trying to see if she'd give us a second chance, but nothing. I think I'm most disappointed that she hasn't expressed her concerns before now and if she's acting on a whim based on her feelings today, I'm disappointed that she wouldn't give us a few days to come back with a proposal.

This brought up feelings that I let someone down, which I try my hardest not to do. I feel blindsided by this news, especially because my partner and I were making good strides in getting this going. I don't like giving up and at the same time, I don't have the energy in me to fight for a second chance. I wasn't getting much money out of this, hardly anything, and was doing it for the experience, to meet new people and to get my name out there. None of that is worth trying to persuade this person. Her mind is made up. What's funny is she apologized numerous times to me on the phone. There's a lot more that she said, but no reason to hash it out...time to move on.

Week 2's info, Saying Yes to Reality, is very fitting...things will not always go according to plan...people are not always honest...or loyal. I think I accept reality and the things I can't change pretty well, which is good. That's why I'm not too distraught about the news today. Life goes on. I have other things that I'm focusing on and much more excited about.

An exercpt from this chapter says, "We express our feeling without blame or aggression and the chrge around them disappates. Saying yes to life as it is doesn't mean that we never feel disappointed or saddened by our lives. Saying yes means that whatever happens, we take the stance of remaining open and friendly toward our experinece." Really, that's all we can do, right? What good comes from focusing negatively on something that's happened? Nothing. Be open to what's happened, learn from it and move on. We all make choices and have things happen beyond our control. Why waste time? Move on...

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