I don’t remember where I first heard the term “Monk Mode”, but it has stuck with me ever since.
The idea behind it is just that there are times and seasons in life when the best thing to do is to eliminate social interaction and other distractions and really focus on your goals. It’s about drawing into yourself, working tirelessly on just a few key projects, and letting everything extraneous fade into the background.
And I bet that if you’d heard about it 3 months ago, it would have sounded appealing.
Now it might sound restrictive because you’re being forced into Monk Mode by circumstances beyond your control.
And social interaction might be forced in ways it wasn’t before, now that you’re with your family or roommates all the time.
Nevertheless, the current quarantines, shelter in place orders, or general lockdowns are, like all situations, a genuine opportunity.
You may have more time. You may have less. You will certainly need to make changes to your daily routines, and adjust to a more uncertain future.
There will be people who wait it out, watch a lot of Netflix or Disney+, and return to life as usual.
They will be forgotten.
There will be others on the front lines of the crisis, in hospitals, delivering groceries, or filling prescriptions.
They will be honored.
There will be those who take advantage of this time to build something new. A habit, a skill, a business, a knowledge base.
They will be envied.
They will build and rebuild, and as life returns to normal, their life will expand into something more than it was before. Because that’s the beauty of Monk Mode. After the sacrifice, the work, the struggle, comes the reward.
How you use this (forced) Monk Mode is up to you. We’d love to help.
It looks like you are considering Parley Blue as a way to “aproveitar o tempo” (take advantage of the time).
If you’re wondering if it’s the right step for you, please email us at hello@parleyblue.com and ask me anything you want to know about our elite Spanish, French or Portuguese fluency programs.