Picking up where I left off, one of my New Year’s resolutions was to focus on the moment rather than the outcome. I touched on it briefly at the end of my last Sunday Journal and wrapped it up by saying “This feels like a satisfactory ending”. Do you ever say something in the moment that feels right, but as you reflect you realize you were mistaken? Well, this was one of those moments. I do not regret anything that I wrote in that journal, I was very content and excited to celebrate finishing it with my favourite Hazy IPA, Parkside Dreamboat and watch football at The Local. That being said, it was not a satisfactory ending as I entered the week a bit stressed about Going The Distance, losing sight of focusing on the moment rather than the outcome.
As the week began, I got back to writing my upcoming scary short story. I am very excited to share this, but I am taking my time as I want it perfect, given it is my first one. This wasn’t what was stressing me out, rather it was when I was researching how I could get more people to visit Going The Distance and read what I was writing. I have considered how I could promote Going The Distance for a while now and it is still a big question mark.
Usually, when I was sitting on the toilet, I would read through blogs or Reddit pages on how to grow one’s website. I have no problem being honest and sharing how I feel. It was a hurdle at first, but I have come to find comfort in writing and sharing. What I do struggle with is promoting it which made me feel frustrated and overwhelmed as I have no idea what I am doing. From what I understood, it takes a considerable amount of effort, dedication, and a bit of luck to expand your reach. I see people online who appear so confident and post a lot about their lives, experiences, products, or blogs. While I don’t lack confidence, I am self-aware and considerate of how people think of me. What I mean by that is I know exactly who I am. I am not interested in posting frequently. I am not interested in telling people how they should live their lives. And I am not interested in shamelessly plugging my website or experiences. People are busy enough with their lives, working through their own challenges, and creating their own life experiences. I have created an avenue to share my life experiences and thoughts in a way which I believe could be beneficial to someone.
Author
PATRICK SMYTHE
Project Manager
Civil Engineer
Motivated
Storyteller
Big Time Dreamer
Subscribe and follow
Stay Connected with all new Going The Distance updates, posts, adventures, and more.
Contact
Everything I was reading did not seem like something that I would do or had the time for. It takes enough time to write and edit. Now I was reading how much more time and social media presence I had to spend. I was already trying to reduce the amount of time I spend on social media as it is. During this struggle, focusing on the outcome of gaining more readers started to place seeds of doubt which was souring my vision of Going The Distance.
Two Fridays ago, I went to a friend’s cabin for a boy’s trip. This was a much-needed getaway and great to catch up with everyone. As each of the boys fell asleep, my one friend and I were the last by the fire. As a supporter of Going The Distance, he asked me how everything was going. I caught him up on where I was at in life and making Going The Distance a priority again. I also shared my doubts and struggle with getting more people to read. It was a very refreshing conversation. We talked about my goal for Going The Distance. He understood where I was coming from and related it to his own amazing, personal and professional projects he had completed. He pointed me towards a couple of great examples that were related to how I was feeling which I will write about it in the future. As the fire crackled on, the standout advice he provided was:
“The sole focus of your energy should be on the craft and your love for it. The people that want to read what you write, will”
This was exactly what I needed to hear. For me to understand something, I can’t just think it or say it. I need to either write about it, experience it, or discuss it in detail with someone for it to become true. Having just gotten back into the swing of things with Going The Distance, I felt I was trying to skip a step in my journey and was moving from what Going The Distance was about. I need to remain focused on the moment. I am ambitious in everything I do, and I’d be lying if I said I don’t want to see this grow. But it is ultimately a hobby, a passion project if you will. It is not about achieving any accolades or gaining attention. I am open to any advice and will continue to learn ways to drive this forward. However, I will maintain who I am and not sacrifice my values. This is about challenging myself, learning, being honest, and enjoying every step in the journey. I will remain focused on these aspects, continue to write for myself, and feel proud when someone does connect with what I share for those moments are priceless.
To sign off with a satisfactory end on this Sunday, I go back to What This Means to Me to remind myself of the start of this journey, where I think I said it perfectly:
“At the very least, this journey of creating the website was an amazing experience allowing me to reflect on what I have been through, to be honest, and learn new skills. Writing these blogs is very therapeutic, forcing me to really articulate my thoughts and recognize where I am in my life. Understanding that the original intention of this website was to learn a new skill and work towards achieving a goal, I know I will have a great sense of pride once it is complete.”
“If I am lucky enough to have my voice reach one person outside of my immediate circle, it would truly be a privilege”
Sincerely,
Patrick Smythe
