Thoughts from TWC’s Myra Salzer.
Recently, I participated in an absolutely magical Zoom meeting. Its magnificence can’t be measured by its productivity, but rather by the thinking we did, and about how it made us feel. Very briefly, there were five participants, including me. The age range among us was late 40s to late 70s. Geographically, two of us were in Switzerland, one of us was in Aspen, Colorado, and two of us were at the TWC offices in Boulder. The five of us are on a fascinating journey to create a family-of-affinity office for a group of investors. The concept of this office is new in the family-office space and exciting, though it’s not especially new to its creators. I wrote about this concept in the book, The Cabin, which was published about 10 years ago.
What was especially significant about the Zoom call for me is that it pointed out how we as a species are losing our reflective time in this plugged-in economy. The meeting sparked me to think about my own thinking, and how that thinking, in turn, sparked creativity. At this meeting, we were all thinking about our thinking, and it had an exponential effect on where the conversation went. It’s been a long time since my brain has been so happy.
Often times, after work and before I work out in my home gym, I feel drawn to doing yard work – whether that’s raking pine needles and pinecones, pulling weeds, chopping down low branches, or doing other fire-mitigation activities. This is mindless work. In the past, I’ve chastised myself for not plugging in and listening to podcasts or audiobooks and learning and growing while I’m doing these chores. After the Zoom meeting, I realized that through my yardwork I’ve been unconsciously unplugging and allowing my mind to travel.
I feel very fortunate to have had this realization. It’s likely to shape how I spend my time going forward. I wonder if people under 30 years old can relate. I worry that we’re losing this ability to unplug and create and think about our thinking. I believe this would be a tragic loss. So that’s the challenge, and I’m committed to thinking about it and exploring its effects… maybe even coming up with solutions!