It’s 0600, alarm beeping, I have 10 mins, check phone, 37 WhatsApp messages, 26 emails, 9 Linkedin alerts, triage most of those and then check BBC news, same old, check BBC sports, football, great result for Brighton, cricket not so good, snooker, Ronnie not playing again, check share prices, ticking up, then back to the more difficult emails, I make one decision, defer another, delegate that one, check Calendar, ready for that meeting, not that one. 0605…what are we having for dinner? Do I have a shirt ironed? Do I need to bring my trainers to work? What day is it? I’m wired. I want coffee. But first, I need a shower.
I am more connected and informed than I have ever been.
The truth is that I’ve found myself in a world where being “fast awake”—constantly adapting to new problems, meeting deadlines, or keeping myself up-to-date with the constant flow of information, trends, innovations, and technologies—is perfectly normal to me. I don’t know any different. I can’t remember when it wasn’t always like this (no matter what my more nostalgic-leaning friends tell me).
But while I am constantly hyperaware of the demands being placed on me (some self-imposed, I admit), there’s another phenomenon happening in parallel: as well as being “fast awake,” I can also be “wide asleep” when it comes to pausing, reflecting, and being intentional in my daily practices.
The world might be falling apart in front of me, but there are days when I would be too busy to notice it.
Take, for example, my drive to work this morning. I can not help but notice (probably because I’ve already determined to write this post) the number of pedestrians walking with their smartphones in hand. Their heads are stooped down, and they are not even looking where they are walking. I imagine it will not be long before they need my chiropractor’s number.
In the next 15 minutes, I notice one lady trip on the uneven pavement, another bump into a bike, and another man almost walk into oncoming traffic before catching themselves. WTF? The world has been taken over by Phone Zombies.
They are everywhere (Singapore included), and you can’t unsee them once you see them. Inevitably, I think to myself, is this me? Am I a zombie?
Is this another extended metaphor for my life?
Fast Awake: Always On, But Never Done
From the moment I step into school, I’m in motion.
There’s a palpable sense of urgency, driven by my calendar appointments, deadlines, and the pressure to meet the diverse challenges of the job. The inbox and chat messages ping away, and I dive in headfirst, trying to do it all as well as possible.
For many, this constant state of being “fast awake” can take a toll. We stay busy, but do we ever slow down to reflect on whether our actions are making an impact? In fact, when was the last time you were fully present in a moment? It merits asking, and it may surprise you.
Wide Asleep: The Comfort of Routine
Sometimes, it’s easier to fall into a rhythm where we go through the motions, completing tasks without questioning their deeper value.
Indeed, some of the most challenging parts of my work are taken care of because good people and systems are in place to support me. But I think the routines offer the most stability in my hectic life.
Routines eliminate thinking, reduce cognitive load, and ultimately make things easier for us. So we build, rely on them…and eventually begin to depend and become complacent about them.
And because of them, we stop growing and become “wide asleep” in our work, coasting on autopilot into apathy and stagnation…
So, I guess it’s obvious that we can’t lead if we are “fast awake”, nor can we lead if we are “wide asleep.”
How to Break the Cycle: Reflection, Purpose, and Action
So, how do we shift from being fast awake and wide asleep to being fully engaged? Here are three ideas I’m thinking about:
Reflection. No one likes to “reflect” (particularly not kids!). It’s hard, so we avoid it. However, reflection can happen in small but meaningful doses. For example, asking one simple question at the end of each day: What worked today, and what didn’t? Or jotting down quick thoughts on what we might do differently next time. Or setting aside a few minutes to get feedback from a colleague to hear another perspective.
Purpose. Many of us entered the teaching profession with a strong sense of purpose. But over the years, we sometimes lose sight of why we started. So perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to reconnect with my “why” occasionally.
Bring Back The Condor Moment. I often think of mindfulness as a lengthy, meditative process. But I can always find small moments throughout the day for intentional thinking. Instead of rushing around, I could try focusing on being present for five intentional minutes between meetings (instead of having them scheduled back-to-back). While serving in the Army, strategic reflection under pressure was often called The Condor Moment. I would do well to remember that they work just as well out of uniform as they once did back in the day.
Stuck In The Middle With You
One of my favourite songs and lyrics comes from the Stealers Wheel’s Stuck in the Middle with You. I share them here at the end of my post to help describe where I’ve ended up and to help me close:
Clowns to the left of me Jokers to the right Here I am Stuck in the middle with you.
I don’t want to be a clown or a joker, so being “fast awake” or “wide asleep” is probably not where I want to be.
Therefore, if I choose to be stuck anywhere, I may as well be stuck in the middle. With you.
In the meantime, maybe it’s time I took one of those Condor Moments.
The fabulous Peter Ayres inspired this post a couple of years ago as we put the world to rights over a cup of coffee. It was the first and only time I had encountered the term “fast awake,” and it’s another one of those things that’s stuck with me! Or, as Peter might add – media via tutissima est.
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