Given the virtual nature of modern life, I don’t see many children playing with blocks. They quickly look to use their parent’s phone to watch their favorite videos or allowed social media channels.
Blocks as bricks are all around us. Houses, buildings, as well as sometimes streets contain them. Whether small or large, by themselves each are too small to make an impact. When stacked next to and upon one another, they take on more strength, influence and visibility.
Using post it notes, I recently tried to write down everything that needs to be done at work and at home. One idea or task per post it note. All set digitally on a white board where they could be moved, set to a specific color, or deleted if they really did not seem important.
In looking at the many post it notes, I could see there was a lot to do. Yet doing one thing (one post it note alone) would not have very much impact. When writing a task or idea on a post it note it seems to be so very important. Yet when looking at them when finished, none seem to be as important by themselves as first thought.
Placing everything next to each other, from worries to tasks creates a perspective that we easily miss when running through our daily lives. You more easily see how things change when there is more perspective. Urgency and importance are much more fluid and temporary than when they first appear.
What seems easy never is. Especially when you look at what needs to be done for impact and a favorable outcome. It’s never a post it note but rather a series of post it notes or even the depth of an entire board of post it notes that generate meaningful outcomes. Much like the outside wall of your home, Placing one brick to build a wall does nothing. Only when many are in place does a wall finally appear.
Reminded of this, you begin to understand why quick answers are weak. Ideas offered as suggestions never gain traction. And why moments in life that create exuberance last only for a brief moment. None can exist for a long time by themselves.
Life demands that we place a series of blocks together, one at a time, to build anything of value. Be it family, friendship, career, business or profession. Reminding us to be patient in our life’s journey as we alone must continue to build it.