So this morning Alli, my wife, locked herself out of our apartment. Along with not having keys, her wallet and cell phone were both in the apartment also. She was dropping GHB off at daycare so her first thought was to call me from there. She ended up leaving me a message from there and from one of those LinkNYC things (free internet/phone kiosks here in NYC). Luckily, I didn't have a busy morning and I happened to be on my home when I got her messages. She called again from one of the LinkNYC and we were able to set up meeting at home. So all in all she was locked out for maybe an hour.
The first thing I asked her when she got home was "what were you going to do if I wasn't on my way home?". She had come up plan of places to go if we didn't speak and list of people's number's she wanted if I couldn't get home relatively soon. Those number's included an old coworker who lives in our hood and another mom from GHB's class (they've become friends because they're both on maternity leave right now).
This got me thinking. Everyone's got to have this, what I'll call, "secondary network". You're primary network would be the people you would call in actual life or death emergencies; your significant other, your parents/siblings or your bestest (I realize that's not a real word) friends.
You're secondary network would be the people you can rely on during these kind of "not-quite-an-emergency but definitely urgent" situations. Now not everyone you know should be considered a part of your secondary network. I think Alli created a good litmus test: if you'd feel comfortable showing up randomly at their house when you're locked out and you feel like they'd let you in no questions asked, then they can be in your secondary network.
So who would those maybe 5 people be for you. Really think about it. This is important because these should be the people that you tell about your health and fitness goals (along with your primary network). They will end up being the ones who ask how it's going and offer support when you need it. They will keep you accountable without the pressure that can come from being held accountable.
Like I said, give it some thought. Hopefully it won't take you getting locked out of your home to come up with some people.
