Purpose Schmurpose

Clearly, We're Not Our Best Selves Yet.

Answering 7 Strange Questions by Mark Manson felt like a good idea at the time, but I've been sitting on Marli's answers for months now. It's time to get a move on if I want to add mine before the whole year's gone by.

What's your favourite flavour of shit sandwich and does it come with an olive?

MJ: Putting personal matters on hold in order to travel for work. When it's a new client, traveling is fun. When it's a client you've had issues with, not so much. I even had to be away on my birthday once, but it turned out to be lots of fun - my clients even gave me a birthday cake!

EH: Responsibility. I hate always being dependable and thinking of consequences on (what feels like) everyone else's behalf. On the flip side, it means that my leadership skills never get the opportunity to stagnate and when I do check out of life, there are teams (at home and in the office) that I can lean on for a bit.

What is true about you today that would make your 8-year-old self cry?

MJ: That I'm not going to be a vet. Nor am I going to have a farm (or a dog for that matter) by the age of 32 (this even makes me want to cry now).

EH: That I don't believe in fairytale endings and never play the piano anymore.

What makes you forget to eat and poop?

MJ: I am outside, playing with animals or working on a really nice project and the math and/or coding is difficult, but I can figure it out.

EH: New experiences allow me to get lost outside of everyday life's constraints - whether it's being creative, exploring, learning, or feeding my imagination with stories and books.

How can you better embarrass yourself?

MJ: I can better embarrass myself by actually going on a diet/eating plan and actually admitting that I am on one. 'Diet' sounds very negative though, but for lack of a better word, I need to start watching what I'm eating if I want to fit into my clothes again (even typing this is hurting my ego by the way).

EH: Think less before I act. I should do/be/wear/post whatever I feel like without giving a millisecond's thought to how it will be perceived. I may end up making a fool of myself, but that shouldn't matter. What should matter, is how I feel and what I experience out in the world (or in the bedroom).

How are you going to save the world?

MJ: I am going to save the world by saving its animals and being kind to my fellow humans. I heard a quote recently that I absolutely adore: "When you have a choice between being right or being kind, be kind."

EH: See something, say something. All people (even those you think are irreversibly hateful or narrow-minded) deserve the chance to grow. None of us come through our formative years with truly open hearts and minds. Much of what I now practice and believe was brought about by others teaching me about what goes on beyond the borders of my own life experiences. I owe it to the world to pass that on. Maybe something I say or write will shine a light for someone else. This little light of mine, man... "When you know better, do better."

Gun to your head, if you had to leave the house all day, every day, where would you go and what would you do?

MJ: Ag, this one's easy. I'd spend it with animals. Be it on the farm or helping out at a veterinary clinic or a shelter. I'd also sneak in an hour at the gym (LOVE my new gym program:  PWR by Kelsey Wells).

EH: Explore my own garden (or any park). Read under a tree, get a vegetable garden going, play with the dogs, stare at the sky. Come to think of it, why don't I?

If you knew you were going to die one year from today, what would you do and how would you want to be remembered?

MJ: Travel! Travel! Travel! And I would like to be remembered as kind, proud, funny and loved.

EH: (A) I'd stop "killing time". I'd love to say that I'd sell everything and travel until I die, but I'd need to spend time with my loved ones and not ruin their lives by leaving them desolate, so I would probably continue to work so that my loved ones are cared for, but I'd stick to office hours and use all the available time off to do what brings me enough joy to spread around. (B) I would like to be remembered as someone who had a positive impact wherever she went.