Pillar Three: Be Intentional
I was chatting with a friend regarding my last blog post and the word she used to describe it was, “intense.” She’s not wrong. But I have good news: there is no homework anywhere in this entry. It’s more philosophical than tactical. Here’s where we stand; You know how you work and I’ve shown you how to break down big dreams into small steps. Next, I want you to know what you are going to do before you sit down to do it.
Hear me out. Does this sound familiar? You sit down to get stuff done. You’re at your computer and while organizing your thoughts you click on that Facebook icon, or Insta, or that Target sale ad. Click! Now you are dazzled by all different kinds of socks?? Well, ok. Ankle, quarter, calf, oh my! Which will best compliment your athletic aspirations? Then you notice all the sock models are holding water bottles and you’re reminded that the kids borrowed your favorite bottle and bit through the straw. Time to open a new tab (still deciding on the socks) and pop on to Amazon to look at water bottles. There are so many choices! Maybe there is one recommended for runners. Because the socks inspired you to start running again. New tab, new search. Wow, look at all the Couch to 5k articles! Those should probably be bookmarked because, well, it’s been a while.
And times up. The baby is awake. The kids came home or your next appointment has arrived. The time you set aside to get stuff done has disappeared and you have nothing to show for it. You didn’t even buy the socks!
We have to stop doing this to ourselves.
It sets us up for feelings of failure and frustration. Your tasks aren’t done and now they have to be shoved into your already busy schedule. You’ve also robbed yourself of the satisfaction that comes from ticking the box or drawing a line through your ‘to do’ item. This is why I plead, “Know what you are going to do before you sit down to do it”. Let’s not play fast and loose with the precious bits of time we find between commitments and obligations.
Let’s be intentional with our time.
I promise that you will enjoy the infinity of the internet if you first take care of that one thing you sat down to do. Look, I know you can multitask, but the internet is a professional distraction. Everything on it is literally vying for your attention All The Time. I speak from personal experience.
The fix? Here’s how being intentional plays out in my world. Each day there are little opportunities, pockets of time, to tackle my ‘to do’ list. When those moments present themselves, I take a look at my list. (That list I taught you to always keep updated!) I look for the easiest item on the list, because instant gratification. BOOM! The first item is checked off the list and I move on to the next one. Once I have that heady feeling of accomplishment to propel me forward, I take another look. At this point I am looking for any items that need to be done at that particular time. Meaning, they require my full attention or are time sensitive. A very real example of this is writing these posts. In order to do any writing I need to minimize distractions and use a pen and a legal pad. I hit a wall every time I try to do this at the computer and end up going down the internet rabbit hole. You know the one. All that to say, I need to write during those sacred blocks of uninterrupted time, knowing that I can type it up while watching HGTV or when the kids are popping in and out of my office. I visit my task list multiple times throughout the day to be sure I’m staying on track, but most often I’m there to add items. So. Many. Items.
I have one more thought to share before wrapping up. I’m always asking you to be self-reflective and constructively critical of your behaviors, challenges and such. Now is not the time to stop. Please remain in the mind-set of self reflection. If you find that, despite your best intentions, you are still dazzled and distracted by the clickable pretty pictures, then consider what might be happening; Is your planned task too large? Should it be broken down into smaller less overwhelming pieces? Or, maybe the block you are experiencing is environmental. Will you work better at your computer, or outside, or maybe even take your computer outside? Maybe you ditch the computer and grab a legal pad. I can’t be the only one who works better with pen and paper (and no clickable pretty pictures). Ultimately I’m asking that you Be Open, Be Creative, and Be Honest with yourself.
If you have tried everything and are still not making progress? Call me and we’ll figure it out together :)