In This Edition:
1.
Half a Decade
2.
Doing it to Ourselves
3.
What About this Moment
4.
The Energetic Learn How to Pause
5.
Parting Words
Half a Decade
No matter how you're counting, at the end of this month half of the
first decade of this century will be over. Do you have more Breathing Space
in your life than, say, a year ago? If not, perhaps it's time make some
critical choices before the egg nog and candy canes divert your attention!
Doing it to Ourselves
Actually, the number of items competing for the time and attention
of today's business professionals, and the schedules they're trying to
balance and juggle, leave most people in a tizzy. When asked how things got
to be so hectic, many respond in a way that is mystifying. Their response is
similar to the situation where you walk into a room and see a child and a
broken toy. You ask the child what happened to the toy. He simply shrugs and
says, "It broke."
Adults who are continually racing the clock to get things done are
acting in ways analogous to the child who claims, "It broke." Such adults
are taking little responsibility for their hectic lives. They claim that
they're victims of circumstance.
Still, as one proceeds through work and life, presumably one begins
to understand the importance of:
- being more selective,
- becoming and staying organized,
- saying no,
- maintaining balance, and
- living in the moment.
Too many people proceed as if they've never heard of these notions or, if
they have, they pay them extremely short shrift. Such people proceed at
full bore; they don't seem to have established, let alone pursue priorities,
hardly ever say no, and shortchange themselves of essential nutrition,
relaxation, and sleep. They convey the message, "The toy is breaking more
each day, and I can't understand why. Soon it'll be shattered to pieces."
What About this Moment
Living in the moment remains one of the least understood,
infrequently addressed and seldom used human capabilities. Too few
individuals have any experience or knowledge of living in the moment; it is
lost among a flurry of activity -- "busy-ness." Living in the moment means
proceeding through your day with vibrant expression and keen perception,
with an intense awareness of your surrounding. It's getting to work each
day with the thought, "I'm alive, and this day is only starting."
Living in the moment means being aware of your power in the
present. While it is not a recipe for getting things done per se, it helps
enormously. It is being able to observe the finely woven canvas of your
career while you are in progress. It is giving yourself permission to be
who you are. It is resting when you are tired. It means not having to
constantly strive.
Freed from the preoccupation that limits your experience of the
present, however, you may feel more present than you have in years,
increasing your ability to focus and get things done.
Once you realize what it means to dwell in real time and how far you may
have strayed from the mark, there are several things you can do to begin to
catch up with today (or at least this week). Many are deceptively simple,
but don't let that obscure the powerful results they offer. Foremost is
giving yourself permission to take time-outs at work as you deem them to be
necessary.
The Energetic Learn How to Pause
Some of the most productive and energetic people in history learned
how to pace themselves effectively by taking a few "time outs" each day.
Thomas Edison would rest for a few minutes each day when he felt his energy
level dropping.
Buckminster Fuller often worked in cycles of three or four hours,
slept for 30 minutes, and then repeated the process. He found that in the
course of a 24-hour period, he would get far more done than if he had
followed traditional waking and sleeping patterns. While this approach isn't
for everyone, it worked for Bucky. By giving himself rest at shorter
intervals, Fuller was able to extend his productive hours.
Remember, for most people, the time when they are least alert is
between 2:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. greatest alertness is between 9:00 a.m. and
noon, and between 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Your alertness will vary depending
on your own physiology and inclinations, as well as on the hours of
consecutive duty, hours of duty in the preceding week, irregular hours,
monotony on the job, timing and duration of naps, environmental lighting,
sound, aroma, temperature, cumulative sleep deprivation over the past week,
and much more.
Parting Words
Look for the time intervals within your own work week, and even
weekend, when you are fully alert and productive in order to efficiently and
effectively get things done.
