How I Got Myself Out of an Emotional Jam

Why I scribbled this note, which still sits on my desk two years later

Author created used ChatGPT

About that note I wrote two years ago…

I think I was struggling to complete my third book in my Alfred series, and it was hard to tie up all the loose ends. I know people prefer shorter books, attention spans being what they are. I was exceeding the optimal book length, but the story needed a complete and honest resolution.

I realized my consulting practice was nearing sunset. All my clients had retired, and a younger generation had emerged, referring work to their colleagues.

I was slower on the tennis court, though still enjoying the game and mostly holding my own. No longer playing competitive club tennis, I was now seeking players like me, content with a solid if uninspiring game, liking to win, but mostly liking to have fun.

My husband and I were becoming less good sleepers and a bit stiffer in the morning. Noticing our “sleep scores” would become our next chapter.

I could go on, but none of the trends I was experiencing looked positive.

And then I wrote on a scrap of paper with my messy handwriting, these words:

“It’s not a race. It’s a commitment.”

I let it sit there, and its purpose was to remind me to push ahead and not let the aging process and its particular nuisances win the day. I told myself that someday I would share these words, and that by the time I did, someone else might have come up with this exact sentiment.

So today I googled my words and found that someone on Instagram posted a similar, though not exact, expression in January 2026.

I will still claim this expression, which has served me well and might serve others.

Why “it’s not a race” is important

Almost any serious undertaking I do, and those that are not so serious, require more time.

I walk my dog, Teddy, and I do it at a leisurely pace.

I tell a story, and I don’t rush to the end, but add the details I think embellish or give more truth to the experience.

I drive with more consideration for other drivers on the road. They might not be as patient, attentive, or considerate, and safety is “job one.”

I write at my pace. Now, some might say that my pace is fairly fast because I write a lot, but the words come slower, and I need more breaks.

The important point is that I am fully committed to doing all that I have done and will not succumb to the pressure of doing it fast, or worse, not d doing it.

If we, as a family, go hiking this summer, I will not hike like a 40-year-old, but like one who is 68 and works hard to stay in shape.

So what inspired me to send the message on my scribbled note today?

Today, I hit the part of the uphill climb that felt bigger and tougher than me. Long and short of it, I got a few odd emails via LinkedIn from people I didn’t know.

I was soon to learn that my LinkedIn account had been hacked, and some woman named Kalina was telling my network that I had suggested she contact them. My network is not huge, but it’s nearly 1,000 contacts for a site I seldom use. (btw, Kalina is probably a larger criminal network, not a person).

The series of events that followed drove me batshit crazy:

Many of my old contacts reached out to me via text, email, or phone to make sure it was a scam and to ask how I was doing.

LinkedIn has a rough user interface for support. There is absolutely no one you can talk to (they tell you that via their site), so you are left with a series of messages full of legalese and a “case number,” but little actual help. We are still working the problem, which feels like “more me than them.”

My Gmail became persnickety. I set up a new password, and it’s been slower to let my messages through. I didn’t realize that “It’s not a race” applies to technology, too.

On the “good news” side, my husband is a techie, and he has been helpful. My old network was a group of kind, retired, talented people who checked in and told me if I needed help, they were there.

I suspect I’ve been lucky: while many have been hacked and scammed out of dollars, I can claim mostly lost time and a lot of aggravation. I will have to decide whether to stay on LinkedIn, which I do only because roughly one-third of my time is devoted to my consulting practice, and people want to know who I am.

I let people on Facebook know I’d been hacked, and before I knew it, so many suspicious people chimed in that I got nervous all over again. I have since switched the post’s setting to “friends only.” Lesson learned.

“It’s a commitment.”

I made sure to remind myself of the second part of my scribbled note. I won’t be scared away by nefarious people (or criminal rings) doing evil. I will look for new ways to protect myself.

It has made me think about all the ways our elderly are scammed out of their savings. In a way, they don’t stand a chance — unless their kids and grandkids come to the rescue.

I hope to be smarter, use technology to protect myself, and stay positive.

And because it’s not a race but a commitment, I am still proceeding to roll out my next book. More on that in the future.

In the meantime, I will be like the woman in my AI-generated image. I will work hard, with walking sticks and face looking up. I will continue to believe I can take the mountain.

Come and watch!