My 2.106 Personal Brand and Intentions – “Get a job, Todd!”

Last year, I started a practice of pulling together my “brand” – to help identify, and guide, focus my personal energy. It’s a bit like an organization’s vision, mission, objectives – though there is more of a focus on “why” and “how” I go about living and who I am, than “what” I do. I focus less on uber-efficiency and more on being mindful of my EQ (emotional quotient), less on hyper-productivity and more on living with passion, less on operational scale and more on being more fully present in each moment.

It worked pretty well for me in 2015.  As I entered 2016, I didn’t see much changing in the “why” and “how.”  But, some of the “where” and my focus has evolved with time…or become more defined.  So, I thought I’d give an update.

For my general brand and intentions, click here for my original post last year…

Some broad strokes updates:

1. I arrived at a “tipping point” in 2015, where I needed to face the reality that I needed to secure a reasonable but stable income while still allowing time for a balanced, playful life in community.  Or as dad says, “get a steady job.” I considered continuing to look for working “for the man” – but have come to enjoy my balance, flexibility and autonomy.  This leads to the next decision…

2. I’ve decided to put a lot more time, energy and intention into realizing my two business ideas:

My intention is to meet my need for steady income (I got a job, dad!) while also meeting a community need for value-driven technology support for local businesses. Some of this is explained better here…

3. I continue to have a passion for community work, particularly in the non-profit sector in areas of social justice and inclusion.  So my work shepherding Candlestick House, Time Bank Indy and working to support the Friends of Indy Media Co-op’s Tool Lending Library will continue. I will need to prioritize more time towards my business efforts and do less pro-bono work.  But I’m still engaged here for some balance and variety.

4. Our intention is to remain in Indianapolis until 2017, and more likely the first half of 2018. This is driven by a variety of factors – schooling, small business startup, or other milestones. But, our mid-term plan is still to move to N.C. for warmer weather, ocean and mountains, grits and sweet tea!