One thing I love about living in San Francisco is that I get to host friends at my place who are coming for a visit. Like right now, @emmapersky is on Holiday from the UK and is making a trek through North America over the next week or so. As we were making arrangements around her arrival, I said something like “You can definitely do your work at my place while I’m at the office.” She laughed and told me that she was Holiday, which meant no work.

What?? No work? What does that even mean?

Then we talked about the cultural differences around the idea of Holiday/Vacation time between the UK and U.S. I know that over the summer, there is a very good possibility that if I’m working with people in the UK, they will be unavailable for a few weeks as they will be on holiday. I know this, accept it and respect it.

However, I can’t even remember the last time I took a ‘vacation’ or wasn’t checking/responding to emails for more than 48 hours. The idea seems completely foreign to me. But what is even more foreign is WHY I haven’t taken the time to make this a priority for myself. Is it the workaholic in me? Is it the need to feel busy doing something? Is it the pile of work that never seems to be finished?

So often I feel like I have ADHD, which I jokingly refer to as my multi-tasking super power. But I wonder what would happen if I fully unplugged for a few days…no computer…no cell…and, brace yourselves, no social media. Would the world that I know and love come to a screeching halt? Would I die?

Actually, I think the opposite would actually happen.

I think I would become more aware of the awesomeness that surrounds me on a day-to-day basis that I ignore due to the Blackberry in my hand. I think allowing my brain to slow down will actually help me become more productive as I could focus on the tasks that are truly a priority for my work as well as my personal life.

I don’t think I’m the only one who has this theory. I wonder how many companies share the same thoughts on this and really encourage their employees to take time off. Wouldn’t the world be a much happier place if we took more time off?

Wish I could think about this more…but I have a document that’s due in the morning that I need to finish.

As I said in my previous post, this is my third year for NaBloPoMo, but my first year doing so publicly. The past 2 years I’ve done NaBloPoMo on my private blog that only a handful of people know about.

I’ve been asked why I have an anonymous blog, especially now that I have this blog. Truth be told, sometimes I just need a safe place to vent…to get those thoughts that are running rampant in my head out so they are no longer haunting me. To get them out so others can comfort me or tell me I’m silly for thinking that way.

Why not post those things here? I don’t know…for fear of being seen as weak or maybe its because I don’t want to disrupt the thoughts you already have about me. I can say that I struggle with a lot of things…probably some of the same things you struggle with. I have insecurities and doubts. Don’t you?

I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again, my hope is to be more transparent and honest about things and to use this blog to do so. I still have my anonymous blog and post there every now and then, but I hope to use it less and less as I realize that I’m not alone in my discouragement and doubts.

Don’t get me wrong…life is good right now; really good. I’m excited to use this next month to push myself away from my private blog and to share my thoughts here…whether they are only for me to read or not.

So help me know I’m not alone. Tell me something you wished you could share more openly with others. Be as broad or as specific as you want, just help me know I’m not alone;

Welcome to the wonderful world of NaBloPo. What’s that? Well, November is National Blog Posting Month, or NaBloPoMo for short. What does that mean? It’s a time to commit to blogging at least once a day for the each day in November.

Why do it?

For me, it’s a way to encourage me to not only make time for blogging, but also for me to stop and reflect on the things going on in my life. It’s a time for me to express, into words, the thoughts that are in my head. It’s also a way for me to meet some new friends through the blogosphere.

This isn’t my first year doing NaBloPoMo. It’s actually my third. I completed the challenge my first year and last year, I ended up not making it every day and gave up. This is my first year to try this on my public blog (the others were on my private blog) and I’m very excited, and a little nervous, to blog here every day for the next month.

Hopefully this blog post won’t set the standard for the NaBloPoMo challenge. I wanted to get this intro post out last week. Oops!