I’m a thinker. I like to think about what I’m going to say before I say it. I much prefer considering all possible the outcomes before a decision is made. When my wife asks me, “What are you thinking?” I seldom answer ”Oh, nothing really.” This doesn’t make me better or wiser. I just like to think about things.

The challenge is today most jobs don’t pay someone to think. Rather, companies hire largely on a person’s ability to do. This is easy to understand because doing gets results. Doing leads to achieving goals and profitability. Ask any warehouse manager, doing gets a product out the door. Pausing seems less valuable.

But is it? For example, the power of a strategic pause before responding in the midst of a heated discussion is wise. Let emotions cool before words are said. Conflict can get complicated and expensive in a heartbeat.

I’m an entrepreneur, growing a small company. I’m also an early riser. My purposeful pause is before the “work” day begins. It’s when I think, ponder, consider and dream. It’s when I get my head and heart in sync. The result is a “doing” that is more thoughtful, productive and profitable.

Doing can be a hard taskmaster and when done without purpose it can be disastrous.

As a Chaplain, how do I know when a thoughtful pause about work and life might be helpful? It’s when a business owner, manager, team leader, or employee in response to “How’s your day going” says, “Oh, just living the dream”, which is code for “not really having that much fun”, it’s time to pause.

Create some whitespace in your life. Think about it. You’ll be better for it.