Outside
“Outside” is written by Kelly King, an embodied joy strategist who is creating movement based mindfulness in the journey. She is a co-leader, co-conspirator, and master strategist in The Movement Movement, offering clients her visionary leadership skills while guiding them toward alignment. Together, with Leah Williams and Vincenza Illiano, we audaciously model collaborative leadership for our clients.
Go outside.
Many of us forgot how to people.
I see us melting into sharp elbows and our worst words at the first sign of friction, especially in on-line, public forums where anonymity is possible, or it feels somehow safe to be mean.
A few recent, unrelated events - some harsh, and some thoroughly delightful - lead me to urge every single one of us to please, go outside! I don’t mean outside, like go, spend some time in nature; though, you should absolutely do that too, everyday and often. Instead, I am urging us to go outside in the sense of stepping beyond our normal social circles, activities, and spheres. Go visit other circles, ideas, and places. There’s some magic that happens when we show up in a new space, with a new-to-us group of humans, gathered around one specific, common purpose.
Maybe it’s a networking event?
Maybe it’s a community meeting?
Maybe it’s happy hour?
Open mic night?
A concert?
Maybe it’s a picnic in a park on a beautiful day?
Maybe it’s...
Find one thing that interests you, and find a group gathering around that interest!
Show up in person. Be your awkward, vibrant self who is excited around the idea, topic, event, or hobby. We are out of practice at showing up in community with open hearts and open minds.
When we do show up, we show up as the slightly better version of ourselves, we keep the snark in our purses and pockets, and we reserve judgment - because we also do not want to be judged too harshly in the new space. We make connections because we’re nervous and need to hold onto this new person or people as we try to figure out if we belong.
We need to renew the practice of going outside, with great urgency. We need to practice opening our hearts and minds to each other.
We need practice belonging.
Last week, in my child’s school community, I bore witness to harsh, mean treatment between adults across idealogical difference born of confidence with the stories we tell ourselves in our own heads and in the echo chambers we inhabit online. If we rarely leave our insular, intimate social groups, then we don’t have to face the gentle reality that the world is wider than we often allow it to be. Wider and vastly more interesting than the simple, unchallenging, curated existence that a post-covid world allows.
In my own adventures outside over the last few weeks, I have been delighted by the people I’ve met, the stories they’ve shared, and I’ve been able to laugh at my own awkward moments while easily forgiving others for theirs.
Please, for the sake of the loving and kind world: go outside!
And, if you’re feeling brave out there, dance.