One Step Back, Two Steps Forward: Remember that R&R means Rest & Recuperation

Writing this with the full perspective of the full year of 2024 done. Wow, that was a rough year. 

Lots of good stuff happened but plenty of bad stuff. Being in Silicon Valley, we definitely saw a boom in AI but a massive trainwreck in almost every other sector. A tale of two cities literally. 

My overall business life was good, despite some LP issues, fundraising issues, cash flow issues. That was in addition to the mess of my home life I’ve alluded to many times before. Perhaps this is what drove me to overcommit to doing more & more things: speaking & attending conferences, more board seats, more consulting projects. More mentoring time both paid but mainly free/volunteering. By the summer, I admit I was kind of a mess physically and emotionally, despite having a pretty good gym & exercise regime. 

So while my family went back to Taiwan, I went to Vancouver to spend the bulk of the summer with my parents. Vancouver, weatherwise, is perfect during the summer months. It’s incredibly pleasant, sunny. Not too hot and not too cool. 

It’s funny that despite how old you are, your parents still treat you like a kid. They leave me Canadian dollars for going out, they take care of meals, groceries and laundry. You end up regressing back to your childhood, locked up in your room, doing work but otherwise just reading, watching Youtube videos, listening to podcasts, writing and just chilling as it was relatively quiet that summer on the business side. 

I got to sleep in and catch up on some reading. Did my gym workouts outdoors & sun. But most importantly, to mentally prepare for the storm of travel and business challenges I knew I had to deal with when everyone came back in September. This summer time was valuable, not just the time spent with older parents but for strengthening oneself. 

The US Military calls it R&R, rest and recuperation. Sometimes you really have to retreat before you can advance, especially in tough times. Resting is the equivalent in the civilian world. As Banksy was reported to have said: “If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.”