Treat #14
: Out of Sight is Not Out of Mind
I just returned from 12 days of coaching and, as always, a new level of clearing and completion is taking place in my life. Every year I touch everything in my house and recycle what I am not using. So I am pretty clean.
But, yesterday I discovered something "tucked" under my bed that I am storing for someone. I need to take it to her in June when she is in the U.S, but there was nothing on my calendar to remind me. I had to laugh. I guess I just figured I would remember it was there. Not so.
I know all of us think, if we just put things out of sight, we won't think about them. But the funny thing is they keep thinking about us, 24 hours a day, until they get finished. Imagine if you have 100 or more of those things, tucked in closets, files etc. Good idea to get them on your Project, Next Action, Someday Maybe, or Waiting For lists. And maybe it is time to throw them out and declare them complete.
Here is one client's experience that reminds me of how essential it is to give our minds a rest by writing down and reviewing what needs to be done. Tracking these in a current system gives us the ability to relax and do the creative, productive "out of sight" things in our work and in our lives.
Dear Martha,
I DID my Monthly (I mean Weekly) review. Yes, it had been a month since I really sat down and did the review. Here are the outcomes.
1. I found that I was worried about the amount of items I have in the Waiting For folder on my computerЧthere were over a screen full. After I was done, I found that I had deleted over half and the other half I was able to send a follow-up reminder. In other words, the things that were out of sight became current and "Clean" in a matter of one hour.
2. I was worried that it would take me all day to "catch" up. I also thought that I did not deserve the time to do the review. I had to be DOING something more productive. It only took one and one-half hours.
3. I found that I do not HAVE to spend so much time in the office trying to BE current. I can do that at the Weekly Review. I think I have found a way to work more productively and get out of my office more. I hope this works, as I need to be out and about more, and in the office less.
What a great lesson in the power of our minds. If we keep our attention on what is already in our minds, we have lots of freedom to do what we really want to do. Worry is easily replaced by action.
Give yourself a Weekly Review treat. It will get you out of your head and give your mind a rest. Then you can be "out of mind" with "everything in sight".
Happy mind sweeping, and make sure to check under the bed.
Martha
P.S. Remember to acknowledge yourself at the end of the Weekly Review. Treats are good also!
|
|
