Hello my friends,

The second week of my Reboot/Combat/Capacity Building is half-way done. This week I focused on continuing to build on my tech-habit-disrupting work from my first week, AND ALSO build my creative and imaginative capacities.

I’ve found this week to be much easier in terms of limiting my phone use. I feel I have that many more ‘tools’ to turn to when I feel the impulse to scroll - reminding myself to read the paper, turn on the radio, or just daydream. I am trying to patiently and diligently notice when I feel that boredom creeping in, and mitigate it by doing something non-scroll-y before the urge to reach for my phone becomes too much.

In terms of building my creative and imaginative capacities, I had hoped that I might do at least one organized thing every day to deepen this. Truthfully, I haven’t. I had hoped I might sketch something, pull my favourite book of poetry off my shelf and randomly gaze at a poem. I am only part way through my week, so this is something I can still work towards.

But I HAVE been turning my focus to noticing things in the world. Things like:

• When the light hits the buildings next to the building where I work - rather than this moment being something in the background, I stop and really look at it.
• When the cold wind is particularly sharp on my cheeks, I try to pay attention in a new way (“ah yes, that is really f*c#ing cold!”).
• When I see the moon set over the rowhomes on my morning train ride into work, I try to notice the faint way it dissolves into the fresh blue sky.

These small moments of just noticing have helped me slow down. They’ve helped me relax and get out of my head. And they don’t take a lot of effort.

They just require a shift in focus and a shift in what I notice.

Here are a couple of pictures I took from my office window in downtown Toronto - same view, different time of day, different light...

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What about next week (January 20 - 26)?

Next week, I’m focusing on cultural patterns and activities.

Huh?? What do you mean by “culture” Julia?

Culture is the customs, patterns, ways of doing and communicating within a group that is underpinned by particular values, beliefs/assumptions, and meaning.

I’m going to focus on paying attention to these things (customs, patterns, ways of doing and communicating) within different cultural groups that I belong to.

As you think about your own cultural groups, you can think about ethnic culture, work culture, queer culture, student culture, parent culture, among so many others (What groups do you belong to that share particular values, beliefs, and senses of meaning?)

Sometimes it might feel strange to notice and reflect on culture. Culture is all around us. What we do makes the culture. Because of this, sometimes culture can feel intangible…

Here’s an example.

Let’s say you work in a corporate environment, and very few people ever take lunch where you work. When they do eat, they are at their desk while completing their work. This is a work environment/culture that values working above all other ways of being in the world, to the point where people either do not eat, or when they do, they do it alongside working. The actions of everyone prioritizing work above eating is underpinned by particular values, beliefs and meaning.

Taking the time to notice the activities and patterns that people do (which make up the cultural environment, and are underpinned by certain values), helps to bring to light if and how those cultural environments are working for you or not.

Next week, I will use the information I gathered in week 1, with my tool ‘Finding York Work-Life Mix,’ to help me reflect, as well as notice my day to day patterns and actions paying attention to values, beliefs/assumptions, and meaning.

This will build on the work I’ve been doing for the past two weeks:

• Start my morning with a meditation and facial/scalp/shoulder massage
• Limit phone use to texting and calls, keep other technology needs to my laptop
• Focus on noticing colour, shapes, textures, emotions, my own breathing out in the world
• Do something everyday to pay attention through my senses - sketch something, notice shapes and colours and sounds on my daily walk, read a poem, etc.

I’ll email again in a week-ish with more thoughts and updates!

Julia

P.S.. If you missed previous emails in this Reboot/Combat/Capacity-Building series, you can find week 1’s email (pre-week 1, Jan 6 to 12) here, and last week’s email (pre-week 2, Jan 13 to 19) here.

Julia Gray, PhD

​Website | Instagram | LinkedIn​

• award-winning writer, researcher, teacher
• mentored hundreds of students & clients
• playwright, theatre creator
• chocolate devotee, Mum of 2, ex-bun-head

Looking for ways to build a creative and humanity-centred life or workplace?

• Download my freebie about building an awesome session, like a webinar or presentation (here!)
• Check out my mini-course Write with Confidence & Ease: a course for professional, where I share my proven framework to help you build your writing confidence and skill, and organize your ideas so you can connect with people clearly and authentically.
• Check out my thought leadership through my Substack, The Possibilities Project.

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