Yesterday, I walked to the bus. From our house on the half top of the mountain to the bottom of our village. 1.3 miles. On my way, I passed the ever barking dogs; I greeted random Catalans who hardly ever greet back; I carefully controlled my steps on that slippery wooden bridge over that creek. Only five minutes away from the bus-stop… I cannot miss that fresh beer. Finally, I sit on the bus. 5.25€ to Barcelona. The unknown bus driver knows me. Small talk, a smile and a See you later. I can feel his shining eyes shining through his Ray-Ban classics.
You see, I live 20 miles outside of Barcelona, and yet I do not own a car. I do not want to own a car anymore. I love to walk down to the center of our village and take public transport.
Yesterday, I took the bus to town to take out my fiscal advisor Santi to the Via Veneto, a one-star Michelin restaurant. And this is exactly where fun feels home: in the valley of variety.
How many of us take the car every day to go to work?
How many of us get stuck in the same traffic-jam every day when we go to work?
How many of us take the same bus, the same subway, the same route to do the same thing every day?
How many of us suffer from the same routine in our relationships? With the same food, watching the same programs on the same flatscreen?
How many of us get stuck in monotony in life? And I don’t even talk about the most obvious thing.
I know, I know… I draw an analogy to public speaking with literally anything. But today I do not want to talk about the drag of a monotonous voice or the drag of always planting in the same position on stage or the drag of monotonous narrative in comparison to reliving exciting moments or the drag of avoiding any possible pause like Saudi Arabia avoids any last human right.
I don’t have to talk about public speaking. Monotony sucks. Or, has monotony ever been good?
Kill your monotony in life.
For a change, leave your car in the garage sometimes.
For a change, take your spouse out for a spontaneous romantic dinner here and there.
And, for a big change, when you present on stage set off a fire of variety in anything you do!
On stage or off stage, on a bus or in a one-star Michelin restaurant – life is so much more exciting when you kill your monotony.