They just hop from phenomenon to phenomenon, all day long

Debussy said that music is the space between the notes. The rests are what allows them to resonate, reverberate, and reach their full measure of expression.

But what if the great composer was talking about more than just classical instruments?

It seems to me that human beings could benefit from learning this principle of composition. Because for many people, work has become so overwhelming that they just hop from phenomenon to phenomenon, all day and all week long.

There’s no space between the notes. Is it any wonder the department of health and human services reported in their annual stress survey that one fourth of the workforce has felt like screaming or shouting because of job stress?

Would you include yourself in that number?

Unfortunately, the digital revolution has completely eradicated any sense of task boundaries for business professionals. As a recovering workaholic, I can assure you that this is no joke.

The harder it becomes to tell where we end and the work begins, the more likely we are to burn out.

One solution that’s been helpful in my own creating of this nonmusical space is the victory log. Each day, instead of writing a list of things I hope to do, I make a list of things I’ve already done. The moment my task is complete, it goes on the list.

From something small like submitting an application to something big like shipping a new project to something simple like asking for help editing a piece of code on our website. This victory log is a real time record of my executions.

And it not only boosts my confidence and builds my momentum during the day, but taking ten seconds to fill out that list gives me a beautiful sense of reward. And that prevents me from feeling like I’m always in the middle of something.

The victory log gives me permission to notice when one task ends and another begins. It’s the space between the notes that allows my work to resonate, if only with myself, so it might reach the full measure of its expression.

Now that sounds like a song worth singing to me.

How will you create space between the world’s green lights and your own stop signs?