A strategy to bring more harmony into your life
I have a theory that it’s not so much all we actually have to do in one week that kills us, it’s thinking about all we have to do. It’s the thinking that stresses us.
I consider myself an organized person, but on some occasions, I’ve experienced a scheduling system failure, when all available RAMs of memory in my brain’s circuitry become overloaded. The next morning, when a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach awakens me, it is too late.
Here’s a strategy — even for the organizationally challenged — to bring more harmony into your life. It will free up those vital memory RAMs.
Take twenty minutes each Sunday to sit down with your calendar — paper or digital- to map out the next six days with a thorough “to do” list, then take a preliminary look at the following three weeks.
In order to cast a net that really catches days, it’s necessary to take into consideration all the tasks you do in one week, both professional and personal. This is not for the faint of heart, but it’s crucial. Here’s what we really do each week:
Work: Meetings, prospecting, desk tasks, planning, billing, reading, researching, travelling.
Errands: Banking, cleaners, gas station, post office.
Children: School, health, lessons, sports, carpool, play dates, parties.
Appointments: Health, fitness, beauty, automotive, animals.
Shopping: Food, clothing, drugstore items, home, gifts.
Correspondence: Bills, cards, and packages.
Home: Cleaning, laundry, decorating, improvements, cooking, repairs, entertaining, gardening.
Family, Friends, and Personal: Inspiration, introspection, rest, recuperation, relaxation, grooming, creative excursions, education.
Would you agree that, after doing most of the above, it would seem there is no time left for the last and most important category: Personal? The way to go about solving this real-life dilemma is to move Personal from last to first, making it a top priority.
Here’s an interesting tip — the left side of your brain — the location of logic-loves lists! It goes on automatic pilot when making lists, sorting, and shifting until a schedule appears that can accommodate everything. Sometimes, it’s almost manageable! If you ever hope to get it done, write it down.
Once your list is done, make it a habit of scanning it morning and night. When you’ve completed a task, cross it off. For me, it imparts a great sense of satisfaction to see all the items I’ve crossed off in a week.
You may discover that you do a lot more than you realize or give yourself credit for. You may also discover that golden moments were unconsciously wasted because there was no net to catch them. Moments to grow, to think, to nurture your dreams.
How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. Annie Dillard
And we all know the truth when we hear it.
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