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Students@LSE

November 15th, 2016

The importance of stopping, taking stock, then moving forward

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Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Students@LSE

November 15th, 2016

The importance of stopping, taking stock, then moving forward

0 comments

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

A post by LSE alum Ria

I am thinking back to the person I was when at LSE… Always on the move, work and then some more, getting to know exciting people, and never getting enough of my School and all that it has to offer. It was a jolt of energy to my system – kind of like a big, warm bottomless cup of coffee on a winter’s day.

Indeed, many of the days were dark and cold when the season turned in London, but this buzz and pure energy of (mini) campus life had me in its thrall. Years after graduating, I had internalized that lightening pace in my work and other domains of life, kind of in the manner of a reflex action. I get things done and I pride myself in that.

What I am going to write about today is the importance of being able to stop, take stock, and then move forward. I think a lot of the time we are prone to thinking – what next, where to, how to and when to – burning questions for students and professionals. Having a bigger roadmap is of course useful to evaluate progress against.

But to be able to move at a less-than-breakneck speed allows each step to be more surer, and also gives one the ability to calibrate response time and better respond to situations. I am finding this is the case as I have gone along to work in different countries and cultures. Of course old habits die hard, and I still find it rather difficult to sit still without glancing at the mobile, checking e-mails, or just doing some kind of activity.

To me action has come to be tantamount to production, but the question is indeed whether it contributes to productivity or becomes mere white noise – one of many external stimuli, taking away from being in the NOW, in this very moment. I had some life lessons at LSE, which exposed me to the flip side. Sitting on the warm sunny lawns of Lincoln’s Inn Fields, sipping a burning hot chocolate on the steps outside the Old Building, enjoying the bird’s eye view from the windy terrace of the New Academic Building, some heartwarming conversations (and heated debates!) with friends… Somehow these memories go deep, and I find these moments were worth more than their weight in gold: finding that happy balance!

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