I got eight hours of sleep last night.
And I have Arianna Huffington to thank for it.
Two nights ago, our entire team attended a World Affairs Council of Philadelphia event at which Arianna Huffington was the featured speaker. A political icon turned publisher – she’s co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Huffington Post – she certainly has plenty to say about world events, political affairs, pop culture and journalism.
Instead, she delivered quite a different message, captured in her newest book Thrive (which we all left with a copy of).
Our current definition of success – measured by the salaries we receive and the size of the offices we inhabit – is killing us, she said. We are experiencing stress overload and burnout, and it’s hurting us and the ones we love.
Huffington said the pursuit of money and power is akin to constructing a stool with only two legs: At some point, it’s going to collapse, taking us down with it. What’s needed, she argued, is a third leg of the stool – one that is dedicated to our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.
She specifically recommended three antidotes to our stress-filled lives: more sleep, regular meditation and gratitude.
As is often the case when such wise words are delivered, they came to me in the midst of an extraordinarily stressful time.
So, when I arrived home last night, after four consecutive 12-hour days involving three major presentations, I decided to honor the weariness of my body and spirit. Instead of heading to the gym, I ate dinner, drank a glass of red wine, and headed up to bed.
Thank you, Arianna.