Inspiration is: Following "outside your lane."
photo: Angela Newton Roy
I once listened to a podcast by Stacy Tuschl that was about restructuring your calendar to be more efficient. The topic I found most eye-opening was PROACTIVE versus REACTIVE work. Tuschl pointed out that rather than starting your day by scrolling Instagram and “engaging” or responding to non-urgent e-mails right away - which is considered to be “reactive work,” to instead tackle the tasks that will actually “move the needle” in your business.
After some self-examination, I realized that I was spending almost an HOUR of my morning scrolling Instagram viewing countless beautiful interiors, only to put my phone down, feeling inadequate. Next, I would open my inbox and allow a chunk of my day to be eaten up by responding to ALL instead of only the important emails. Again, I’d complete this task feeling mentally depleted.
Inadequate and uninspired all before 9AM?! Clearly, I needed a reset.
Knowing that habits are hard to break, and I probably wouldn’t be able to reprogram myself not to hop on Instagram first thing, I decided instead to take charge of what I exposed myself to. I needed to make my feed be more well-rounded. Humans dabble in a variety of subjects to feel whole, and we are naturally curious beings, so it’s my thinking that our Instagram feed should reflect that too. About every six months, I make sure I am LEARNING and FINDING INSPIRATION on Instagram by following outside my lane and I edit my feed accordingly. It’s amazing how much it has changed my experience!
Here are some of my favorite follows that represent my non-design interests, and that support my efforts to draw inspiration “outside my lane.”
Fitness
Health/Wellness
Gardening
Food
Travel
Mental Health
Humor and Quotes
Changing my routine has led to a more proactive work flow, which for me has led to more interviews, collaborations, new AGI Resources and fun brainstorming sessions with my team.
Are you being PROACTIVE or REACTIVE? Who leaves you feeling INSPIRED?
-AG
