Today is Valentine’s Day and oh what a day it is. The day is dedicated to celebrating those we love and who bring joy to our lives. However, it can also be a day that creates stress and anxiety when it comes to determining how to celebrate it, how much to share and what to buy. The paradox of it all makes me chuckle.
I also admit to being a bit of a skeptic when it comes to these types of holidays. My cynical belief is that the day is really just a ploy by Hallmark and the floral, chocolate and candy industries to get us to buy their products, because the yearend holidays have been over for a few months now, so they just use Valentine’s Day as a way to make all of us start spending again. But I digress.
If I put my cynical beliefs aside and just focus on what the Valentine’s Day concept supports, appreciating the one’s you love, then I’m more willing to participate in it. I believe it is critical to make the time to acknowledge those important to us rather than letting it get overlooked in the day to day busyness of life. If you add some children into the mix and an entrepreneurial endeavor, or two in our case, it starts to get even harder to commit the time and resources toward it. So in a way, I’m actually grateful for this date on the calendar and all the marketing that goes with it. Without the fanfare that goes with the holiday, all the appreciation might be just another task that gets pushed aside or re-prioritized.
I guess this makes me more of a self-processed supporter of the holiday now, but I’m still holding on to my cynical beliefs and therefore I’m resistant to giving into the big marketing engines and buying the usual Valentine’s presents. So then what am I, or anyone who might share similar thoughts, going to do differently on this Valentine’s Day?
I have a novel idea that I would like to share. It is potentially self-serving, but I think worth considering regardless. Are you ready?
How about committing to spend a half day having a conversation with your partner that matters? Think about it, how often do you buy and give a present like that for your partner? Hardly ever I would guess because of the challenges we all face in our busy lives today. We rarely have the time or commit to making the time, to have the real conversations. For a couple with kids, businesses, jobs, pets, relatives, etc. it rarely happens. Instead we rely on a card, flowers or chocolates to communicate what matters for us. So my invitation to you is to try something different this Valentine’s Day and commit some time to really connect with your partner in order to explore and share what is important to you, them and the “us” you create together every day.
If this suggestion sounds interesting or painful, either one, then I believe you should consider the concept further. You can do that by reading the previous post about the workshop we are offering on March 17th. It is designed to help generate these important conversations and learnings, while having fun together. Here is what our past participants had to say about their experience in the workshop.
• “What an eye opener this workshop turned out to be! We learned how to evaluate the big picture for ourselves as individuals and then how to create one all-encompassing one that takes into consideration all of the various roles in which we serve. Melissa and George brought just the right energy level and humor to our half day together. My partner and I walked away from the event knowing that we have more similarities in our vision than we previously thought.”
• “Extremely thoughtful in terms of how you designed the exercises, acknowledged everyone’s uniqueness and also the follow-up and take-aways. Really wonderful stuff.”
• “Enjoyed the experiential nature of the day.”
• “I’m glad we took the time for this workshop. This focus is an issue that we often don’t reserve time for. Good presentation and organization!”
• “Really love the topic – anything to do with partnerships and couples! The facilitators are both so present and I always felt listened to.”
• “Very fun and very thought provoking!”
• “It was a fun experience and the exercises were helpful. I’m glad I came.”
• “I appreciate the energy level of the instructors, how purposeful and gentle, yet playful the tone was. This was very profound yet subtle. My partner and I will be discussing the material further together.”
I hope this post provides you with an exciting alternative to consider as you choose how to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year and inspires you to commit to having the conversations that matter with the one’s most important to you!!
Happy Valentine’s Day.