Is the Universe getting in the way of your goals?
The art of noticing vs procrastinating and how to bake an apple pie.
“If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe” - Carl Sagan
This article is a part of my series called “Weekly Agenda” where I encourage not only thinking, but provide action items for you to implement into your business practice. These articles are sent out most Mondays. Find more here.
The first time I watched Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, I was 19 and enrolled in an Astronomy class in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Our professor assigned it to us as one of the first lessons, and I remember falling in love with it all. The cosmos, the vast unknown, the poet scientist with a childlike enthusiasm for stars, and the way these galactic patterns can all be studied, measured and then predicted.
Hearing Sagan’s apple pie recipe was a profound realization for me that turned into a very misconstrued encouragement for my procrastination. As an anxious perfectionist and over thinker, I would put “the universe” before any task. That could be deep cleaning my room before writing a paper, or baking cookies for a study group and not showing up. All is well, if you get the important task done, but in my experience, inventing the universe is energy draining. I read a joke recently, if you ever want a creative (read: neurodivergent) person to clean the house, just give them a few forms to fill out. You’ll have the cleanest house on the block!
Now looking back, with my fully developed frontal cortex, I see how I was creating these blocks because of depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. It made me nervous to sit down and write a paper, because what if I did bad job? What if I failed? I can’t really fail at cleaning my room, so that is a safer option.
In my years of working in branding and marketing, this of course, pops up time and time again, and is much easier for me to recognize in others. I see someone with an idea, a great idea, but something is stopping them to put it out there for others to see. That fear and the block it creates will pause the forward momentum needed for all the tasks associated with a great idea turning into a project or a business. You, dear orbiter, can probably think of a few things you have always wanted to do, but can’t seem to get the universe out of the way. My suggestion is instead of “inventing the universe” is to notice the universe and how it has done all of the start up work for you. This way our proverbial baker knows they did not have to start at the beginning to make their pie. They did not have to invent fire or domesticate cows, or discover that apples are edible or learn how to turn wheat into flour. If you want to bake, start with finding the recipe. That recipe came from scientific trial and error which is valuable human productivity, and has resulted in plenty of warm bellies. It’s beautiful to think about, how everything is everything, isn’t it?
Well, I made a D in that Astronomy class, as it turned out to be a lot more complex than watching a TV show and waxing poetic about life on this pale blue dot. That failure did not stop me from studying the skies, and getting excited when I correctly identify a planet at night. (Or creating a space themed newsletter!)
I believe what Carl was trying to get us to be aware of, is to be grateful for all that has come before us, and how miniscule our experience is on Earth. Even though, we are small, we can be humble with how we spend this time, and as we find our purpose and our passions, a few failures won’t disrupt the orbit.
Weekly Agenda, 16/52
April 15, 2024
What is blocking you from your project?
This week we are being honest with what is stopping us from doing the thing. What are you making to be the size of the universe?
01. Write down what your thing is.
You know exactly what I am talking about. The thing you think about, the thing you maybe have mentioned to a few friends, the thing you have watched tiktoks about. What is it? My goal is to publish a book of my poetry.
02. Write down your fears around sharing this with others.
Be objective and honest with yourself. This is where you have to be vulnerable. Vulnerability starts when you are alone with your thoughts, way before you attempt it with an audience. A lot of these fears will be what you are worried people say. If you are stuck, think of the toughest people in your life, how would they react to your big idea?
03. Defend yourself to those fears and fallacies.
We have been practicing objectivity when it comes to our projects, so after writing your fears down, come to defense of yourself. Think of it like you are defending a friend. This thought practice is helpful to me when those anxious little thoughts seep in.
04. Prep your obituary.
This week is my late sister’s birthday, she would have been 32. Her obituary only covered 25 years, but she was accomplished with her military career and her travels. She was a few months shy from leaving the Navy when she died, and I can’t help to think of all the things she wanted to do with the next chapter of her life. The sadness of a life cut short is very close to my heart, and I do not want her to watch me waste mine by living in fear and anxiousness.
In your obituary, what will it say? I hope mine lists a long line of grandkids and great-grandkids I leave behind, a few adoring sentiments about my quirks, and I hope it says “published poet”.
Space is infinite. Take up as much of it as you want.
Love, Britta
PS: I wrote this for my sister, last year on the 6th anniversary of her death.
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My name is Britta Newton-Tarron and I have been working in social media marketing since 2012. Years freelancing in design and marketing led me to start my own boutique creative agency, which I paused at the end of last year. This new project, IN-ORBIT is my avenue to discuss all things branding and marketing with curiosity. We will navigate together how crafting a brand is writing your own mythology. We will stay in tune with the seasons as we rotate in our orbit, and you can learn how to harness your own gravitational pull. Thank you for reading.
Thanks for sharing so openly and candidly. I will say, my house is usually spotless, so working on focusing that energy into something creative is a good goal.
“I can’t really fail at cleaning my room, so that is a safer option.” Yes! I’ve been aware to defaulting to the action but didn’t realize the failure aspect to it. Thanks so much for sharing.