Earlier this week, I asked Tami for a quick review of the budget. After plugging in the numbers, we were shocked. Terrified is probably more appropriate.
We had $7,000 left in the budget. For the entire school year. With more than 8 weeks left to go. And my stomach was in knots.
"Can you run the numbers, one more time?" I pleaded. Hoping. Praying.
Rather quickly, Tami discovered that our main budget line read $20.000 rather than $20,000.
One small mistake was the difference between two entirely different worlds.
And so that's what I've been thinking about this week: the power of pausing.
When we rush, sometimes we risk missing the mark, misinterpreting, or finalizing something before it’s ready. Before we're ready. Whether it’s a task, a conversation, or a decision, taking a moment to pause allows us to breathe, reflect, and correct before moving forward.
Periods are final. Commas pause. And I don't know about you, but when I'm tired, stressed, busy, or upset, sometimes I can make period decisions instead of comma decisions. And more often than not, it is the period decisions that cause friction, discord and confusion, even harm.
Comma decisions allow - even invite - time and space between my emotion and my decision. Which, in the end, prevents me from having to do a great deal of cleaning up or restoring damaged relationships.
As we enter the final weeks of the year (with a sufficient budget in place!), consider taking a pause. Before hitting send, saying the thing on the tip of our tongue, or even before responding to a challenge, stop for a beat. Double-check, consider, and make sure the story we’re telling ourselves and the action we're taking align with who we want to be and what we know to be good and right and true.
It’s not about being right—it’s about getting it right. And the pause can be the difference between panic and peace. Between brokenness and wholeness.
Anyway. That's what I've been thinking about this week.