The Daft Punk song Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger is on replay in my head. With three small kids at home, I’m constantly being pulled in 20 different directions. I move from task to task like a hummingbird—fast and efficient yet rarely stopping to take a breath. Preschool, laundry, dishes, meals, scattered toys. I’m operating at 10 out of 10, all of the time.
"If I can just go a little faster, or work a little harder, or be a little stronger, I’ll be able to find joy in the present moment,” I think to myself.
I’m sure I’m almost there.
The reality is that I never get there. Juggling a job, a marriage, kids, and managing a startup is difficult even on the best of days. Do I seriously think that I’m up for the added challenge of marketing Campgrounds 360? What if I end up having a nervous breakdown?
Last week I met with my mentor Kyle for the first time. As usual, I was a scattered mess. As soon as we sat down I start talking at a thousand words per minute, doing my best to explain my business ideas and goals for his mentorship. Kyle listened politely, smiled, and then told me about his day off.
He spent the day with his 6-year-old son, Isaac. Isaac and Kyle found a small pond about 30 minutes from their house and went fishing. It was a hot day in Roseville, and the short drive out of town delivered cooler temps. As they sat on the bank, poles in hand, they talked about the bugs and the clouds and what the fish might be doing under the water. But most of the time was just spent in silence, minds curiously wandering to nothing in particular.
His story reminded me that the joy I’ve been seeking isn’t waiting for the laundry to be folded and put away. Harder, better, faster isn’t going to get me there. I needed to be outside with my children; away from my to-do list so that I can seek the connections I so desperately need.
A fire was lit within me. I realized that working with Ryan on Campgrounds 360 would lead our family towards a stronger connection. We could discover camp sites, explore our state, and have adventures together—now, not when all the toys were picked up.
Thanks to Kyle, I now understand what this business is going to be for me. My mission is to show you (and myself) some of the amazing connections you can discover when you slow down and take your next great camping adventure.
Life has a lot of moving parts, and that movement won’t stop unless I make it stop. Getting outside and into nature is the first step toward finding some of the peace I need in life. I don’t want to look back when my littles are off to college, regretting that I missed out on the greatest experiences because I was too busy. I want to look back in utter peace and happiness, knowing that we dreamed, we explored, and we did it all as a family.