Don’t Lasso My Imagination
Stretching Your Wings
Okay, so this isn’t so much about growing up as it is more about working with a company, but there are very similar things that go on.
First, all the rules are at the whim of the parent or the employer. If you are an older child and have siblings, then, at some point, you can probably start making rules, especially if you are in charge of them. If you are a senior employee, you can make some rules, too, within reason. But the parent and the employer have the overriding rules.
I just got the image of a cowboy herding up a bunch of cattle. It did feel like that.
Also, both parents and bosses tend to say, “Because I said so,” a lot of the time. Why do we have to do this if everybody on the team would prefer something else? Because I said so. Or, another favorite, “Because that’s the way we’ve always done it.” I know you remember your parental unit saying things like that. I remember hearing the same thing being said on the job.
Of course, maybe your family was different. Mine wasn’t. I remember hearing, “We don’t do that.” Or “Nobody in the family has ever done that.” Another good one that employers and family in charge of you say is, “We don’t have enough money.” It’s all true. They said and likely will continue to say things like that.
I remember as a young girl trying to figure out how to speak as an adult. I would practice making small talk by myself. It was difficult because, at the time, I was reading stuff from Charles Dickens and Emily Brönte. Small talk in the 18th century was different than whatever would pass for in modern times. Turns out small talk was easier once I started drinking. By the time I quit drinking, I’d become a psychic. Lots to talk about then.
I have noticed, though, that parents and employers tend to get tired of the people they are in charge of. So, with intimidation and/or bribes, you can usually do something about that. However, that doesn’t generally work with Medium.
Medium makes the rules, and sometimes, we miss the announcement that a new rule is guiding our lives as writers on Medium. Likely, it is the rumor mill that will alert you to the fact that there might have been a glitch in how we were getting paid. With all the layoffs that happened after the big changeover took place, who knows? There might have been somebody who might have figured out the glitch sooner rather than later. The bottom dollar at Medium is dependent on you. Really, why else would they charge $5 or $15 a month?
Another thing just occurred to me. We know about the boosting. We know Medium loves writers who are good and who can attract folks to the readership. I’d think that those sorts of readers float the boat around here. What about us pen-pushers who are the barnacles on the bottom of the boat? I consider I might be a barnacle — a living, breathing, wannabe writer. I don’t want to consider myself to be a hack. But I must be.
Ah, it’s only the January blues. Maybe I am one of those SAD people and should read a book or binge-watch something on Netflix until I have something original or motivating to say. Or, go sit out on the porch to get some light on me.
If, however, you are only here to meet other writers who share your passion for writing and improving your writing, then it doesn’t matter what the rules are.
There are always other viewpoints you can take with any situation. My mantra growing up was, “Someday, I will be free of this.” Could the same be said of our platform at Medium? I don’t play the game. Year after year, I continue to limp along and wonder how many others do this. If we were kids and tried to form a union, we would have been shot down quickly. Is it the same here at Medium? Would we be shot down if we talked with each other? I know we do, though, like growing up, the complainer always gets the rough edge of somebody’s tongue.
I guess I’m just feeling a little hemmed in today. Maybe I should dig out that book I’ve been working on for the last couple of years and dust it off.
As a motivational speaker, I would advise the person who is discontent with whatever it is in their life to find something interesting to do. I don’t care what it is, though I would cringe if you chose to clean your house. Just something fun to take your mind off of whatever is bothering you. It is really hard for somebody to do something about whatever is bothering them. Especially if they feel like they’ve lost control of whatever it is.
To one person, losing 75 pounds might be a snap. To most others, the idea of losing 75 pounds is overwhelming. I would advise that people stay away from the scale for a while and instead pay attention to what they are eating, not with the idea of not eating but with the idea of just keeping track of what goes in your mouth.
Yeah, yeah, I know. I forgot about those three Snickerdoodle cookies I ate yesterday. Hey, those are a good 200 calories each. If you’d had an apple instead, you’re probably looking at 100 calories. Just saying. Write it down and be the observer for a couple of days. At the same time, start doing some in-house exercises that aren’t going to make the neighbors downstairs call to see if something alarming has happened. I’m talking little arm curls and pushups off of the kitchen counter. Yeah, I know; when you’re old, you have to do things that will not result in calling the fire department to help you get up off of the floor, so just be careful.
I digress. We were talking about how parents and people in charge of you are similar to employers. Just try rowing your own boat for a while and see how you feel. For the first time in my life I might just be unemployable. I’ll have to mull that one around a little. I think it would make me more ferocious about writing, no matter what the rules are.
Thanks for reading.