When the Face Tells the Story

And they say

she's in the class A Team,

stuck in her daydream, 

been this way since eighteen.

But lately her face seems

slowly sinking, wasting 

crumbling like pastries.

(Ed Sheeran, The A Team)

As I was sitting in an investor meeting I noticed that one investor sitting right in front of me had somehow aged. He was well-dressed and perfectly tanned as always, but his hair had sunk in, and his wrinkles looked more pronounced. There is in fact no telling in our business whether this "sudden aging" is temporary or permanent. Sometimes our investors are under so much stress that they age visibly, only to return to their youthful expression when they do better again.

I very much could live without the stress I am exposes to at work, but when I see myself interacting with my colleagues I look surprisingly alive, sometimes even young. In contrast, when I pursue my favorite activity, sitting on my couch and writing spiritual essays, the lack of interaction with others shows up in my face and body language. So it is often hard to tell what is good for us and what is not, but sometimes our face tells the entire story.