There tends to be a benefit of being busier. You often increase productivity by having limited time. This helps with procrastination. That being said it’s nice being able to relax. I think there was a saying about the perfect day being 8 hours of sleep, 8 hours of work and 8 hours of recreation. I think that’s a reasonable approach to life. I think another thing would be schedule time to be thankful and practice gratitude. This could be sabbath day, Sunday or whatever else day to make it.
Source: Attempts – Dan John
Lesson: Winter – Go Heavy, Spring – Get outside, Summer – swim, bike run, Fall – regimented training.
I really enjoyed this book. It felt like John McCleggons Keys to Progress. It was a series of essays and they each provoked some thought. I think 40 years and a Whistle and Attempts are Mr. John’s attempt to summarize the lessons learned throughout his life. I used to be annoyed by the repetitive nature of his work, but now I think it’s just him trying to drive home important points. I think there’s something to be said for seasonal training, seasonal learning and shifting a focus. Maybe I could consider learn something new, relearn something, process improvement and something random. Other quotes I liked, “It’s going to be your turn one day.” That’s inspiring that it’s up to us to train ourselves for our opportunity to give back.
Source: Shambala
Lesson: When warriors peak they only speak in the pure present. The past doesn’t matter and there may not be a future. Athletes, young children, and artists tend to do this. Athletes and artists are often judged simply on their last performance. Kings and queens speak differently. They discuss the past, what brought us here to the present and ideally how what we do here will impact the future.
I think the transition from warrior thinking to King thinking has been very challenging. There is a lot more up and down with warrior thinking as things are only based on how we feel in the moment. King thinking requires a lot more stability. Instead of being reactionary there is a pause to think about the big picture. I think this type of thinking takes time. I think it will be challenging to be able to do both and I’m uncertain if it will be chasing two rabbits and as a result we’re worse at both. Being stuck in the middle of performance and planning is where I feel a lot. I think there needs to be the competing mindset when competing and a planning mindset when planning. The skill is likely the ability to shift between the two.
Source: How will you measure your life – Clayton Christenson
Lesson: Decide what you stand for and stand for it all the time. It’s easier to do something 100% of the time than 98%.
As above this comes with a plan. If you stick with the plan and don’t compromise life gets easier. You make the decision once and don’t have to repeat it. It’s a more efficient way. To bridge the other two quotes – I think we need time for reflection. We can spend time re-evaluating our decisions and reflecting upon them. There needs to be a time for planning. There needs to be a time for making decisions. But most of the time, we should have our values clearly articulated to filter our decisions.
Album of the week – Devil and the Almighty Blues
Seeking Progress 