WHY EVERYONE NEEDS A BASEBALL CAP AND CHEAP WATCH

Like most business owners, I’m always conscious of presenting my best self to clients and business acquaintances. I have a quality (albeit relatively small) collection of jackets, skirts and business suits, I never leave the office without my bag filled with business cards and brochures, and I walk into every meeting and event fully pulled together.

After all, who’s going to trust a business owner who provides high-level executive support to keep them organized if she’s not organized herself?

But, let’s face it, sometimes always putting my best professional foot forward takes its toll, especially after weeks of back-to-back meetings, networking events and staying on my toes when clients call.

But, my pulled-together self has a secret weapon – R.U.N. When I execute the launch sequence for R.U.N., I do so far out of sight from my day-to-day professional self.

Codename: R.U.N.

Operation: Rachel Up North

My family has a dinky little two-bedroom cabin that’s planted right into the middle of the Wisconsin north woods. It’s the first place I R.U.N. to whenever I’m lucky enough to have a brief lull in my busy schedule.

The first thing I do when I get there? I scrub any trace of makeup off my face, I pull on my favorite pair of ratty old jeans, get my trusty red baseball cap down from the closet, and slap on an oversized $3 sport watch I picked up at a local flea market.

No business suits, no leather-bound portfolios, and no phone tethered to my hip.

The “raw” me lives like this for two or three days … scouting the nearby trail for firewood, wading in the nearby creek with my dog, taking early-morning hikes looking for a glimpse of the resident black bear, living on hot dogs, and quietly meditating in front of the fire. And doing it all in ratty jeans, baseball cap and cheap watch. The only technology allowed (per the insistence of my mother) is the 25-year-old microwave in the kitchen and, in the event of rain, the ancient DVD player hooked up to the even older television that doesn’t get any channels.

Last time I returned from a recent few-day retreat from my north woods hideaway, I got to thinking how imperative it is for me to occasionally get back to basics. It’s undeniably one of the biggest weapons in my business-building arsenal. When I’m R.U.N.ing, I simply let whatever happens, happen. I let my thoughts come and go freely. I don’t let a clock dictate my day. I ban the words “I should” from my vocabulary.

It never fails to provide me with the mental space I require to tackle challenges that await back at my office, and gives me the perspective I need to think outside the box. I liken returning from my R.U.N. to the middle-of-the-night answer that comes after days of swimming around in the muddy waters of a seemingly impossible question.

So, take it from me, sometimes the best thing to do when you’re feeling claustrophobic under mounds of paperwork and projects is find a place to run to, where you can spend some time just “being.” Be with yourself, be with your family or friends, be with your thoughts. But, most importantly, just be.

And don’t forget your baseball cap.