thinking time...

I deal with transactions every day. Whether I go to the grocery store, mall, or even call my doctor, I'm used to transactional interactions. You do what you have to do, complete the documentation and move on. I get my goods or services completed and go on to the next thing. rarely do I experience more than this in daily life.

All of my previous work environments have been this way as well. I worked as a barista, saying hello, making a drink, taking their money and saying goodbye. Done. Next customer. This cycle repeats itself over again throughout the day and week and month. It's a very linear type of thinking with many checks and balances to ensure consistency, accuracy, and overall satisfaction with the transaction.

Well, say goodbye to those days. For a person like me who loves to check things off the list, that type of job worked well. One customer after the other until everyone was happy. Not much of a challenge, but easy to think about, relate to, and do. Unfortunately, I can't just check things right off the list, I am more than just an element in a transaction. It's like I've discovered a new world where there is more than simple transactions. It's like the child who wants to be a teacher just because that is all they've ever known. I've only known transactions, until now.

This linear thinking is out the window. These days my mind jumps between numerous projects and documents and research. I still have it ingrained in me to input the research or numbers and move on, but there is so much more to it. There are numerous trails of thinking to travel down in order to arrive at a conclusion, and that conclusion may not even be possible. A day isn't watching the clock tick on, waiting until my shift is over, but rather doing things by length of projects. I can't just clock out and go home, these thoughts follow me home until I resume them the next day. Some days I have heaps of ideas and thoughts and motivations and fly through things. Other days it takes me hours to wade through some reading or documentation.

All the while, I have to keep in mind I'm here to learn. so, if I spend my time reading an interesting article on furniture or design, its not wasted time just because something tangible isn't produced. If I schedule a lunch date or sit down and chat with a fellow employee, it's not wasted company time but a means of networking. At the end of the day, every element of my day can't be documented and labeled because so much of it involves time thinking.

After about a month of this, I am still getting used to it. Each person around me is like a little hub of thoughts and ideas, all of us working on something a little different. When we meet to collaborate, we bring these little hubs together to hopefully make a bigger hub. I truly think the challenge is taking these ideas that we spend so much time formulating and making them into something tangible. No, its not a simple transaction, but an idea that if pursued correctly turns into a product or launch or program which ultimately improves the company.

So, my project timeline is long. instead of a few moments, it could be months. but all that said, thinking is hard work and at the end of the day, hopefully my thoughts will produce something proactive, even if it comes to fruition eight months from now.