IT’S OK!

What a week !

While I hope I can inspire people around me with my blog posts they also help me reflecting on what’s important to me, what keeps me moving and thinking about these days.

No matter if it is in my book ( yes, yes, yes – it’s coming together) or on this blog I like this to be authentic and real in terms of what I have been able to explore over the last years and what I have learned on this journey so far, especially living the lifestyle working in events.

Yes, I call it a lifestyle as your job and your private life overlap and interfere a lot and you can’t just draw a line. And the longer I have thought about it, the less it made sense to me to even try to differ between work + life. Making it a lifestyle is a way easier and healthier solution I think. But this is not I like to write about today.

After last week’s blog post LIFE BEGINS AT THE END OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE (btw thank you so much for all the positive feedback on it) I got a lot of stuff done for the book the following Monday and worked on to do’s I have been pushing off for a couple of weeks to make sure I would be all ready to enjoy some great days off in Cali end of the week.

Tuesday and Wednesday were still busy, I learned a lot and I got new homework from my editor regarding my book as well as so much more inspiration and tips what else I need to do.

My plan was to finish a couple more tasks on time for a deadline on Wednesday night, which didn’t really work because I got really tired #mommytobe #littlelucyhasherownrules. So I got up early on Thursday because I couldn’t sleep anymore as I felt the pressure to get it done.

In my head I was already thinking that I could make the next couple days a little bit of an in-between working and relaxing kind of deal (as I know that Mr. V also always has so much on his plate as well and we both never ever mind and are very supportive of each other’s work) but when going on my beach walk an Thursday morning after I already spent two hours in front of the computer one of my favorite quotes came back to me: IT’S OK. 

And that’s exactly what I decided would be my mantra for the next couple days.

So let me tell you why I think it’s so important to let go, hang loose and take it easy from time and how I learned it:

I am a really structured and disciplined  person and I work well with to do lists and even better, when I get to cross off as many things as possible of those lists by the end of the day. It’ fuels me, I feel accomplished and it keeps me going.

Call it a very helpful skill when you work in the event industry as a project manager and you need to keep the overview, shouldn’t forget about the big picture while paying attention to the little details ( starting from job related tasks to your outfits #whichkicksdoIweartoday #doIstillhaveenoughconcealer #whenismynexthairappointment)

It makes you keeping things under control, it gives you self-consciousness and you have the feeling to be a little bit ahead of the game or at it least right where you need to be. The more busy things get a work, the more you also start structuring your private life: You set your alarm on weekends, you know exactly which yoga class to go to and before you know your whole Saturday has it’s own agenda, too.

It’s fine, you like it and it doesn’t mean you are not relaxed or under pressure at all. It just means your brain doesn’t take any time off. And the big question is: How long can you do that? Every cell phone needs to be recharged (almost every night in times like this) but our bodies, minds and brain can just go on and be programmed the way we want without any time off? See what I am saying?

For sure everybody is different and for sure everybody has different outlets and faces different borders. We should never judge the capacity and the power of others, even less we should compare ourselves.

Friends of mine who haven’t worked in the event industry used to ask the same question:

How do you do it? How can you work crazy hours, travel much, sleep less and nevertheless look great and don’t feel exhausted?

First off: You feel exhausted from time to time and I am thankful I am a woman so I am able to constantly follow the new make up trends ( yes concealers can still get better) to cover up short nights and long days at least a little bit.

No matter how tired I was and I how much concealer I needed I never felt unmotivated or bored and that is what gave me so much energy.

For me the people made all the difference. The teams I was working with always felt like a big family.

The quote sounds so flat and almost a little bit too simple but: WORK HARD, PARTY HARDER is basically what it was. We had so much fun. We loved what we did and we loved each other. 

We were fighting and discussing over what the best solution for the project might be but we always had respect for each other as persons and we admired each other and for me this is what made all the difference in the world.

A lot of times I was the only girl on a project, a lot of times the one leading the project as well as later in my career the one leading a whole department followed by being the head of an entire branch.

Besides all the good, bad, not even worth judging topics and aspects of the experience being a female leader and girl boss it was the men (and good thing there are a lot of men in the event industry) on the team who first and for most told me the “IT’S OK” mentality as well as showed me how to WORK HARD and PARTY HARDER. Awesome.

I couldn’t be more thankful for the party moments, the pub crawls in cities like Hong Kong, New Orleans or Berlin, the live sport events we went too, the concerts and the countless nights at hotel bars chatting, drinking and enjoying life. 

Of course we talked work a lot of times, often we found creative and better solutions together over dinner than being by ourselves in front of our computers in our single hotel rooms.

A lot of times we woke up the next morning, felt tired and sometimes the first thought was: “Oh my gosh, why did we have to have all these gin & tonics last night?” But at the latest when we started laughing again about last nights jokes inhaling our breakfast and getting ready for the day we knew it was all worth it.  The fun has brought us together as a team, made us stronger as team and enabled us to stand in for each other and to act spontaneously if needed, it made us winging things and prioritizing in a good way.

It’s so important to let go, to just be present in the moment with the great people you are with right this moment in the city you are right this moment.

Nothing will happen if you are doing a good job, if you are a good team member and if you are consistent when it comes to your work ethics. Life will automatically allow you to take these breaks. You will also develop a better feeling when it absolutely not a good time to take a break and you have to hustle through it but it will also make you learn when it’s even more necessary to take one (for yourself and for all the other people around you).

The funny thing and most of the time the best thing caused by this awesome tactic is: Some to do’s will pass, they will be more or less outdated or time has taken care of them. Furthermore you might be able to see them from a different perspective and might find a better, easier solution to tackle a certain situation. Things just might feel so much easier to do. And you will feel so much more energized to get them done.

As a colleague or co-worker you will be appreciated by your easy-going attitude and a fun team member. As a leader you will be able to be a good role model showing your team that it is okay to have fun and that you are just a human being as well. On top of it you will be more relaxed in your private life as well, your brain will open up and see things you haven’t even noticed before and it will make you a better friend, better partner and happier person in general because YOU are present instead of the YOU behind your to-do list. 

All in all you will feel so much for accomplished and automatically empowered to take on next challenges outside your comfort zone.

Makes sense?

So. I hope you get to enjoy your Sunday, have fun, refuel, go for happy hour, don’t overthink it and just do what you love – or just do nothing. Have a party and fall into bed being tired and happy not thinking about Monday morning, it will happen anyway ;-).

xo, Maika