When it comes to impact statements, it’s all too easy to draw a line in the sand.
Are we making a difference, or taking up space?
This is a black and white delineation in a world of gray. Yet, the underlying message remains on point.
We’re obligated to make a difference. To contribute positively to our community. To leave the world better than we found it.
For our society is like an engine. The more its components help it run, the more efficiently it chugs along. The more those components sit idle, the more it drags.
To a great measure, this is unequivocal fact. Regardless our opinion of a social safety net or welfare, there is a cost that comes with providing opportunities. From paychecks to subsidies, nothing we receive to put a roof on our heads, food in our mouths or clothes on our bodies truly comes for free.
This cost is typically offset by the contributions we make to society, and specifically the economy. This could be 40 hours a week helping a company provide a service to the market. Or the generation of ideas or academic thoughts that allow the society to break boundaries and improve efficiencies. These types of activities provide balance.
But when we’re receiving this assistance while sitting on the couch, it could be argued that there is no balance. What we get is more than what we give in return.
Under this definition, we’re taking up space.
Now, opportunity does not always come equal. As such, we may be stuck on the couch not of our own volition.
Regardless, the optics of this outcome are not great.
So, our society often puts stipulations behind handouts. It requires all of us to at least make an honest pass at offsetting the costs behind them.
This could mean applying for jobs. Or filling out forms to explain disabilities that stand in the way of our opportunities.
The underlying message is clear.
As a society, we don’t tolerate taking up space.
I learned the mantra of making a difference from an early age.
I recall waving goodbye to my father as he got on the commuter rail in his business suit. Or how my mother dropped me off at school and then headed to her job.
Most acutely, I remember when my father switched careers and became a teacher. He hoped to make a bigger difference in the world, and make his own that much brighter.
A quarter century later, I’d say he has achieved that objective. And he continues to do so.
Following my parents’ example, I’ve worked hard in two careers throughout my adult life. I’ve taken nothing for granted. I’ve embraced each day with a sense of determination and purpose.
In the workplace and out of it, I’ve sought to make a difference. To be productive. Not to take up space.
This mission has guided the decisions I’ve made, both professionally and socially. My mantra of impact has led to my drive and my edginess. It’s filled my daily to-do list with a gauntlet of activities. It’s encouraged me to push my limits and take on more responsibilities.
Each and every day, I am following my mission. I am being productive. I am not taking up space.
But maybe I should be.
Living life as a productivity-holic has its own associated costs. (Is productivity-holic a word? I feel it should be.)
Most notable of these costs is burnout.
It takes a lot of energy to devote so much time to an agenda. Focusing on maximum productivity, on making the biggest difference I can — that constantly requires me to think of What’s Now and What’s Next.
The detritus of this focus can lead to exhaustion.
And exhaustion can weaken a mind. It can lessen its impact.
I have felt these effects loud and clear. Yet, whenever I have, another thought has come to my mind.
Suck it up. Keep making a difference. Don’t you dare take up space.
This is stupid.
Taking a breather now and then is critical. It rejuvenates us and unshackles our mind. It allows us to make our biggest impact.
Yes, taking up space causes a drag on society. But the short-term cost is more than offset by the long-term gain we can provide.
So, moving forward, I will start building these breathers into my life. I will stop viewing the concept of taking up space as heresy.
And I will continue to take up space here and there, as long as such endeavors are undertaken with a greater goal in mind.
While it’s blasphemous for one to prescribe the path they have not yet taken, I encourage you to join me on this journey. For it will provide mutual benefits.
Let us find our pause. And in doing so, let’s refresh our purpose.
The space we take up will not be wasted.