Life Upgrade: 8 day week?
I’m in the midst of a big business and life upgrade.
But what I’m noticing gets in the way is time and energy – i.e. the lack of.
Every morning, I feel like a hibernating bear who’s been woken up a month too soon. My greatest skill (after procrastination) is being able to nap any time, any place.
I feel like I never ever have enough time to do, well, anything .To be honest, sometimes it feels like a miracle that I get anything done at all.
Which is not true. The reality is I get loads done. I run a business, I am a great mum, a good mate and love the life I’m creating.
BUT my overwhelming sense is the former. I have these moments of complete overwhelm, general knackeredness (is that a word?), that creates horrible low teary splodges on my page every now and again, as it were.
Time to take my own advice (the definition of madness is doing the same thing but expecting different results). This week, I sat down to do a time and energy inventory. What gave me energy and time? What drained it?
I’m incredibly lucky to have amazing people in my life who superboost my batteries. So it’s not ‘people vampires’ who are sucking me dry.
What was? I went through my day and literally took an hour by hour snap shot of what I actually spend my time doing. And gave each task/thing a smiley or sad face according to boosting/draining time and energy ratio. Oh yes, I have very scientific methods.
Here’s what I discovered:
1. The lost things drainer. I can never find the phone/my house keys/the dog lead (in fact, only this morning, Oscar the dog went on the school run wearing a very jaunty scarf) My lost possessions hunt costs me on average of 34 minutes every day.
Oscar needs therapy after his owner makes him wear red scarf on his walk
2. The sugar rollercoaster. I have a big spoonful of sugar in my coffee and have around 6 cups a day. I’ve just been reading a brilliant book on sugar addiction called Potatoes not Prozac - and it suggests that my energy dips have something to do with my rather prolific sugar and caffeine consumption. (Of course, I kind of knew this but up to this point, I couldn’t face doing anything about it). The naps, the energy slumps, the painfully slow, grumpy start in the morning has a massive impact on my life and costs me at least 2 hours a day of good old fashioned, present, grounded, energy.
3. The no-routine method. I work from home, I’m not an organised, routine kind of person, I tell myself. I go with the flow. This is great but without some kind of structure and routine my life, I simply end up dancing to someone else’s tune. I don’t prioritise what’s important to me, I just react to what’s happening next. This costs me approximately 2 (more like 10!) hours of productive time as I websurf, skype and tweet with the flow through my day…. (and I really need to get a grip on that. I accidentally proposed to someone last night without really meaning to. Sorry about that, I got carried away. You know who you are.)
TOTAL TIME: 4 HOURS 34 MINUTES. AND 10 AND HALF BUCKETS OF ENERGY.
That’s more than an extra day a week! And an Olympic swimming pool of energy.
I could do with an extra day a week and a Olympian size injection of energy.
So I’m making some small changes (read the lovely Leo from Zen Habits on why small changes are advisable).
This is the plan for May:
- Create a ‘I’ll never be lost again’ system. (hook for the dog lead and keys/basket for paperwork/bowl for the phone)
- Drink coffee without sugar (I will work on dropping caffeine next month)
- Before I clock off, prioritise three things to get done the next day and experiment with a different daily ‘routine’ until I’ve found a routine that works for me. (will report back at end of May)
Yes, yes, I know! I will be doing the inner work too. I’ll be asking the bigger questions – What do I have to believe to create balance in my life etc etc. But right now, I wanted to take some real, grounded action steps. My first babystep to buy a hook for the dog lead.
I would love to hear ways/systems/small babysteps you have taken to upgrade your life and boost the time and energy banks that work for you.
OK, I know I’m supposed to be the life coach. But, let’s be honest, I think you’ve known all along that you know better than me.
x
Suzy, Your post inspired my post this week over at Counting Zeros /
I also replied to one of my comments with the following (below) which I do think is part of the answer for someone like me (also a terrible procrastinator at times.)
Massively interested in your normal routine experimentation — can’t wait to find out.
The sugar roller coaster is also a part of my day — though not always sugar but also alcohol or until recently smoking — often I have spent most of my working day in high stress and not eating food and then am starved and need a drink etc. constant rollercoastering …
As for losing stuff. Handbag violence is a frequent crime in my day-to-day as I rip apart bags in a frenzy of where-the-f-are-my-keys … and also I go mental looking for “crucial scraps of paper” or ideas that I’ve written somewhere but where? But the losing things is a more symptomatic than a constant curse — it rarely seems to happen when I just slow down.
**** Comment from my blog
When I was reading Suzy’s blog about hunting for energy drainers and looking for ways to get more done, I was tempted to reply that maybe we should factor in purposefully unproductive time — not relaxing per se which I always need to “schedule” but over the course of a day’s work or during a precious writing slot we might say to ourselves for some portion of this window – say 10 % i am going to let myself WASTE some time.
It seems to me that either
A. we will …but we need to, our brains are still working away making new connections even if we decide to surf for an hour or read a magazine or fold socks
B. we won’t feel like it and will voluntarily use our optional time to crack on with all sorts of stuff that only moments before felt like too much hard work
But it felt too Self Help Magazine so I stopped self … whereas obviously I haven’t been able to this morning.!!!
http://countingzeros.wordpress.com/2012/04/28/its-like-ten-thousand-spoons-when-all-you-need-is-a-knife/
thank you honey!
oooo, I can’t wait to hear about your spend-tracker!!!
and yes, the do less, achieve more mantra is definitely one that has worked for me.
what I’m finding though is i definitely need to upgrade my basic systems. I feel like I’m trying to building on shifting foundations.
spent weekend offline, clearing out cupboards, throwing things away, taking up my stair carpet and going to the tip/charity shop.
I’ve started to rebuild my foundations.
but share your spend-tracker. go on! xxx
Everything has fallen in to place for me since I lifted my arms up to the sky a few weeks ago and said out loud with total focus and desire “Universe I ask you now to provide everything I have been asking for and working towards. I am completely ready now and please make it happen” I didnt just believe I was ready when I did this I KNEW I was ready and felt real passion while saying it. I think that in order to attract the things you really desire into your life you really must KNOW you are ready. Belief aloneis not enough. You must know it like you know that outside there is sky and grass. The subconcious won’t be fooled into beleiving if you don’t believe!100% conviction is needed with no doubt, guilt or question bubbling way. If there is just 1% of this negatve stuff it won’t happen. I have complete determination and focus now sincemy talk with the universe. We made a deal and nothing and no one could tip me off balance.
Make a deal with the universe.
I love it!
x
I see a lot of myself in what you have written! I don’t lose anything though I always have my phone near me my keys I leave in a dish in the kitchen and I guess you should have a hook near the door for the lead so you never lose these things. If you have too much clutter at home it is harder to work with but a organised house with everything in the place where it will be used and having a place for it there is an easy way to organise where everything is. I read in a book once called banish clutter by Sheila Chandra it was about the toothbrush method and it explains that when you go to a hotel you place your toothbrush and toothpaste by the sink. Simple she explains that all the things you do in your home you should use that principle. And the rest if you don’t love it need it of use it is not needed. It has taken work but i’m almost there with it and everything runs very easy on routine in my home.
Procrastination is my definitely my demon. I think I am the worlds best. I am self employed and work at home most of the time and the amount of time I use being on the internet and going with the flow is unreal. So I am trying to tackle this now. One of the things I am trying to do is set daily and weekly goals and include in there 30 to 60 mins exercise everyday. Once you have the discipline to to this although it take up to an hour of your day keeps your energy levels high and a bounce in your step and also a feeling of achievement and once you have done it you then feel ready and motivated for all the other tasks of the day. It takes me a lot of willpower to start this but once I got in the routine of it I found it easier and even looked forward to it some days. Result is I feel fit healthy and in great shape and don’t feel so bad about the odd food blowout either.
As for energy balancing your blood sugar levels is the best thing ever. It means not having caffeine and sugar though and eating three meals and two snacks a day that are healthy unprocessed and free from the bad stuff so food in its most natural state possible do this and the first three days your feel terrible after that your be bouncing off the walls with natural energy.
this is great advice.
but nearly savaged the post man today.
sugar definitely makes me a sweeter person.
oh dear. watch out world.
x
I have had schedules, many, many schedules – all of which drop in and out of my life dependant on just how jaded I am on any given day. The days where I (as I call it for some unknown reason) “hit my targets” are the ones where I have a sense of enormous satisfaction, followed by a large whiskey and coke usually! But I did find a website a while ago now with an intriguing cleaning schedule on it – I don’t always manage to stick to it but when I do the well being and smugness that comes of having a properly clean and tidy house is like a big old snuggly blanket to cloak yourself in – bloody satisfying. It’s only 20 mins a day and a lot of it ends up taking only half the time the second time around and dear God it works – never has my house felt so clean with so little effort…
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/the-schedule-house-cleaning-in-131142
The schedule is 30 days and takes in all the things that I never clean until they are truly vile and can’t be ignored anymore – and by definition of grossness take forever to do. There’s another one for the kitchen specifically which is good too I think it’s linked on the page above. Being relieved of a messy, dirty house means I can focus on the things I want to do and it takes away one of my biggest procrastination tactics! For me it has been one of the concrete things that actually makes my life easier.
this is brilliant! have printed it out and stuck it on my fridge. I can do 20 minutes a day – can’t i?
I got carried away this weekend and cleared out all my wardrobes and then ripped up the stair carpet. (blame it on the no-sugar rage!)
thank you so much for this! x
Hi Suzy,
Having lived through a complete house build with lots of my stuff constantly on the move, I highly recommend the one pocket in my handbag for my keys where they always get placed back = no lost keys. So your one hook for dog lead, another for your keys all sounds good. Start with places for your main items and just create a good new habit of placing them back there after use.
I do have a day job (not creative at present) but find myself as a creative person at weekends in the same predicament, wanting to go with the flow but having a ridiculously long to-do list. I find a list helps me focus but can set you up to fail, as we all know! To get over my procrastination, I have several favourite approaches which I am happy to share:
(1) What I call a “10 minute” task, which is just doing 10 minutes on something but gets me going. “It’s only 10 minutes….so it won’t take me long”, ” I’ll just….” psychology get me out of my chair to do something and quite often you end up doing much more as a result.
(2) Just getting the stuff needed to do the task together in one place so I am ready to go, removing the barrier to getting going, as the task IS ready to go when I next go to it. This has worked really well with a practical task like painting, getting the paint, brushes etc. all in one place. I can then just to get on and do it. I then commit time in my diary as to when I am going to do the task, as the next easy step. All low energy steps, leaving me more positive about doing the task, as it will now be easy to do. I also find I have more energy to undertake the task as I am more positive about doing it.
(3) I do question why or what is putting me off doing what ever I need to be doing, so as to remove the barriers to getting whatever it is I what to do done. If I am just not ready, too tired etc. I acknowledge that is the case and try to be kind to myself. We all do get loads done and just acknowledging this and cutting ourselves some slack keeps the energy levels up and stops the negative internal self talk (a great energy zapper).
(4) Take a short break. Sounds so simple but the short 5 to 10 minute break in what you’re doing keeps energy levels up to keep going.
(5) Not opening e-mail at the start of a working day, giving that first hour or so to a key task (which I have got ready to go the day before), ensures you don’t lose half the day on other less important matters.
(6) A favourite is starting and leaving an item with a ready pick up point: an outline, the starting sentence, a simple framework. I find this really good with writing, as you have something to pick up with and avoids the blank page start. Once I have started, the momentum follows.
Hope this helps. You are not alone!
Cheers, Lesley
Lesley – you are a Goddess of brilliance!
this is wonderful.
love the one about not opening email first.
and I can never find a pen (I bought a box full recently – where do they go?) find pen the night before to go on my nightstand for my writing in bed first thing. I did that this morning and wrote 400 words before I even got up.
I have put up my hooks this weekend and have so far been rigid about putting them there. all good!
unfortunately dog lead went missing over the weekend so oscar had another trip with a beautitful pink scarf this time.
once I find the lead I will hang it on the hook.
I will get there.
thank you for all these – brilliant! x
Suzy I so enjoy your honest approach and the fact that you remind me of me, your life is not perfect its happy and sad at times. I am inspired and grateful for all you share! I have just read eat that frog and I’m doing more than I was before. It’s all happening perfectly!
Thanks again and go for it you know it’s out there. Nicky x
Ok, eat that frog, I will.
thank you for your lovely feedback! great to know I’m not alone! x
I love your honesty Suzy, it’s true as a life coach clients expect us to live the perfect life, do everything right and practice what we preach. It’s not always that easy is it? If only they knew!
Clever idea to blog about your plan. As you know action and accountability are the required ingredients to ensure success. Now that you’ve made this commitment to us ALL, failure isn’t an option. Good luck, enjoy your extra day!
thank you lovely Sue!
managed a couple of days without sugar in my coffee but been a tad tetchy to say the least.
but my hooks are up.
if only I could find the bloody dog lead to put on it. x
I read over and over again that the cure to all of this is meditation.
So do I do it?
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/matthieu_ricard_on_the_habits_of_happiness.html
This guy says it all. I believe it – but that’s not enough apparently.
Giselle
the worst thing is I love Matthieu ricard. I’ve written a whole chapter about him! i’ve taken TM courses and when I do meditate my life is calmer, kinder and more beautiful all round. meditation does work.
but only when you do it.
have been sadly remiss.
but your comment is a brilliant reminder. Hello! the space I crave is between my ears.
I know. I do know. which makes the chaos outside all the more annoying. but what we resist persists.
thank you for reminding me! x
We love you Suzy! Nick x
and we love you too. x