Readers, are you ready to get started on 2024? I hope this issue provides you with some guidance and a dose of inspiration for creating a path to living in a way that offers you purpose and joy while appreciating how others in our community are making their own ways through life.
One of the best parts of editing Lake Minnetonka Magazine is that I always find helpful nuggets within these pages, thanks to community members sharing their stories through the skillful writing and art direction of our team. This month is no different. When I read Jody Carey’s feature about Kindl Coaching, it got me thinking.
The article notes that Casie Kindl advises her clients to stop giving 110 percent. “Doing less is still good enough,” she says, guiding them to set realistic expectations. This notion seems so counterintuitive to the level that many of us strive to attain in our personal and professional lives. And how often have we told our children to give “everything” or “all you have” to academics or their extracurricular activities? On more than one occasion, I’ve heard myself on the stands, yelling, “Leave it all on the court/field!”
While those instructions might not equate to 110 percent, they do get me thinking about if we give it “our all,” how much is left for other parts of our lives? I don’t have an answer here, and I certainly still abide by the notion that one should always put forth an honest effort, and there’s no shame in striving for the top rung—wherever that leads. But I’ve found it concerning as I watch our adult children forge their career paths with unsustainable work hours with little space left for exploring other parts of life. I applaud their work ethic—to an extent—but I wonder about the ultimate value in it at the end of the day. Time will tell. Do you share similar thoughts?
In the meantime, when much of nature rests—the time is ripe for reevaluating the balance, direction and strength of our efforts. Does your power structure of priorities need a reboot?
Cheers to a balanced path for us all,
-Renée Stewart-Hester
