Stop Communicating 24/7; Rejuvenate With Solitude

"It's been a crazy-busy summer."

"We've been playing catch-up all quarter."

"I'm meeting myself coming and going. I was texting my boss last night at midnight."

"All I've been doing is sitting in meetings. My email box is overflowing. I owe everybody something."

"I saw your Facebook post. Did you read my comment?"

Such is our typical hyper-connected world where we're plugged in 24/7--often to people we've never met face to face, serving customers products that we've never seen from start to finish, produced and delivered by people we don't even like.

Yet it often surprises me to hear some people say, "I hate to eat alone." Or, "I never go shopping by myself." Why not? A primary way to get in touch with your real passion and purpose in life is to enjoy your own company.

In fact, the strength of your leadership and personal influence stems from the intensity of your thinking during moments of solitude.

• To think about where you've been
• To identify new passions stirred within you during a new stage in life
• To reconfirm where you're going
• To plan your path toward new or former goals
• To reflect on why you feel so strongly about certain issues
• To consider how different your values are from those of other people you know
• To consider what all people have in common
• To question yourself about why you cling to bad habits and energy drainers
• To gather courage to put aside behaviors, attitudes, and habits that hold you back
• To praise yourself for your strengths
• To challenge yourself to follow your dreams

Reflection and solitude nourish the soul. They re-energize you for difficult tasks--physical work or emotionally draining work such as being a caregiver for a loved one or dealing with a relationship or work crisis. They add space for creativity and innovation. They add joy and gratitude to your life.

The value of our life lies not in the length of our days--but in the strength of our solitude.