Groundhog Day 2013
This past Saturday was Groundhog Day, which I immediately associate with the iconic 1993 film starring Bill Murray as weatherman Phil Connors. Thankfully, I am not waking up to “I Got You Babe” every morning, nor reporting on the freezing temperatures of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. But I’ll be the first to admit that Murray’s comedic struggle to escape the monotony that has become his life can be frighteningly reflective of my own.
Like Bill Murray, how many of us feel as though we are sometimes reliving the same day over and over and over again?
At one point I had assumed this was because I worked in a traditional corporate job, cubicle and all. I woke up at 6:00am on the dot, helped the kids get ready for school, was in the car by 8:00 driving the same route through Bergen County, only to sit in front of a computer for the next 10 hours. At the end of the day, I would hit “repeat” and the cycle would begin again.
I used to fantasize about how much more fun my life would be if I was in a different job or wasn’t working, until I ran into a friend of mine who asked me how things were going. When I jokingly started to compare myself to the film, she laughed and said, “You think your life is like Groundhog Day??” She then went off about the monotony that she had suddenly found herself in as a stay-at-home mom, involving play dates, nap times and after-school pick-ups.
The truth of the matter is that we all have our life’s routines that may make us feel a longing for something more. Sometimes it can feel so maddening that, like Bill Murray in one scene of the movie, we want to throw our alarm clocks across the room to stop the same song from playing again and again. But before you start breaking small appliances, here are a few thoughts to provide some perspective:
1) Whatever you do, resist playing the comparison game – It’s so easy to fall into the trap of “life is greener.” But whether you are contemplating finding a new job, going back to work after a hiatus, or taking time off to pursue other interests, keep in mind that everyone experiences periods of monotony and tediousness no matter what our occupation. Resist the temptation to compare and falsely idealize someone else’s life in comparison to your own.
2) Embrace Boredom – At some point, we need to make peace with some monotony and recognize that daily routines are not only a part of life, but can be the best part of life. Like Murray in the film, only when he learned to make the most of even the most mundane tasks and embraced his life fully was the moment when his life really changed.
3) Think Small – There’s always the possibility that you need a major overhaul. But before declaring that you are going through a mid-life crisis and doing something you may regret, don’t discount the impact that a small change can have.
Sometimes even doing something slightly different, such as listening to a different radio station during your commute, wearing your hair differently or taking up a new hobby, can shift things enough to give you a fresh perspective and may result in more significant changes later on. Recently, I decided to take down all the curtains in my house, which instantly lightened both my home and my mood.
4) Think big – Of course, there are also instances when the small changes are just not enough and sometimes a big shift is required. It may be time for you to re-vamp a major area, and if this is the case, give yourself the permission to admit that it’s time to move on to another phase of your life because this one just isn’t working anymore. To get you closer to understanding what those changes might be, start by still going through steps 1, 2 and 3 to provide further reflection and perspective.
So as another Groundhog Day comes and goes, celebrate your inner Phil Connors and re-think the daily grind that may drive you crazy at times!
Like Bill Murray, how many of us feel as though we are sometimes reliving the same day over and over and over again?
At one point I had assumed this was because I worked in a traditional corporate job, cubicle and all. I woke up at 6:00am on the dot, helped the kids get ready for school, was in the car by 8:00 driving the same route through Bergen County, only to sit in front of a computer for the next 10 hours. At the end of the day, I would hit “repeat” and the cycle would begin again.
I used to fantasize about how much more fun my life would be if I was in a different job or wasn’t working, until I ran into a friend of mine who asked me how things were going. When I jokingly started to compare myself to the film, she laughed and said, “You think your life is like Groundhog Day??” She then went off about the monotony that she had suddenly found herself in as a stay-at-home mom, involving play dates, nap times and after-school pick-ups.
The truth of the matter is that we all have our life’s routines that may make us feel a longing for something more. Sometimes it can feel so maddening that, like Bill Murray in one scene of the movie, we want to throw our alarm clocks across the room to stop the same song from playing again and again. But before you start breaking small appliances, here are a few thoughts to provide some perspective:
1) Whatever you do, resist playing the comparison game – It’s so easy to fall into the trap of “life is greener.” But whether you are contemplating finding a new job, going back to work after a hiatus, or taking time off to pursue other interests, keep in mind that everyone experiences periods of monotony and tediousness no matter what our occupation. Resist the temptation to compare and falsely idealize someone else’s life in comparison to your own.
2) Embrace Boredom – At some point, we need to make peace with some monotony and recognize that daily routines are not only a part of life, but can be the best part of life. Like Murray in the film, only when he learned to make the most of even the most mundane tasks and embraced his life fully was the moment when his life really changed.
3) Think Small – There’s always the possibility that you need a major overhaul. But before declaring that you are going through a mid-life crisis and doing something you may regret, don’t discount the impact that a small change can have.
Sometimes even doing something slightly different, such as listening to a different radio station during your commute, wearing your hair differently or taking up a new hobby, can shift things enough to give you a fresh perspective and may result in more significant changes later on. Recently, I decided to take down all the curtains in my house, which instantly lightened both my home and my mood.
4) Think big – Of course, there are also instances when the small changes are just not enough and sometimes a big shift is required. It may be time for you to re-vamp a major area, and if this is the case, give yourself the permission to admit that it’s time to move on to another phase of your life because this one just isn’t working anymore. To get you closer to understanding what those changes might be, start by still going through steps 1, 2 and 3 to provide further reflection and perspective.
So as another Groundhog Day comes and goes, celebrate your inner Phil Connors and re-think the daily grind that may drive you crazy at times!