Be Courageous, Change the Things You Can

Cal Shook - Foliage - Newington, NH 

“God grant me the Serenity to

Accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to Change the things I can, and

Wisdom to Know the Difference.” Anonymous

What do you want to accomplish?  Is time passing for you with little to no forward progress?  Be courageous. There are simple ways to start on the path to achieving what you’re dreaming of.

1. Serenity

Serenity is key.  Tapping into the God of peace on a regular basis is essential.

Fear produces anxiety which has a crippling affect.  It blocks communication with others and our ability to think clearly to produce creative solutions in an ever changing world.

It wasn’t until I started taking time to relax that I realized how “un-serene” I’ve been.  With a rested mind I am free to create a new vision and a renewed life.

2.  Acceptance

Accepting that some things are beyond our control can be difficult such as natural disasters and another’s choice.   We can choose our response.  Pausing to relax before we respond can make a big difference in whether we sink or swim.   

My mom had no sense of balance and as hard as she tried was unable to ride a bike or ice skate.  One winter as we headed out to run errands, we started walking toward the car, she hit a small patch of black ice, started to slide, grabbed me and we both hit the pavement. Fortunately neither one of us got seriously hurt just bruised.

Next time out, knowing the driveway was icy, I offered Mom my arm.  Mom wanted to be able to do it herself, to get to the car on her own, so she declined.  She walked as carefully as she could, but found more black ice and down we went.

This pattern would repeat itself unless something changed.

Cal Shook - Foliage - Newington, NH

3.  Change

It takes courage to move beyond our comfort zones, to change the things we can.

Mom and I could have kept hitting the pavement together, but after a couple rounds of ground togetherness a solution was reached.

Even though my mother knew she had a balance problem, it was hard for her to accept my help.  My independent spirit felt for her.  After giving it her best effort Mom once again accepted her lack of balance. Doing so freed her to take my arm on icy days as we headed for the car.  This allowed both of us to walk to the car and remain upright.

Trying to change things beyond my control is like hitting the pavement with Mom.  It leaves me feeling a bit bruised.  "Letting Go" of the things I cannot change allows the bruises to heal and makes for smoother forward progress.

Sometimes it takes a change in attitude, a little readjustment, and a new routine to get a more beneficial outcome.

4. Wisdom

Wisdom is needed to figure out what to “let go” of and what to change.

Fortunately Mom’s and my situation was easy to remedy and we both became part of the solution.  Other situations can take more creativity and time.

In last month's post, "Time Clutter", I talked about how cluttering both physical space and my calendar have been holding me back.  Letting go of “physical clutter” is getting easier every day.  The hardest one is the “Time Clutter”.  If I do nothing to change the way I spend the hours of each day, my dreams may slip away as time runs out. 

Creating a "Time Map" is helping me move forward.

A “Time Map” is a schedule to help you fulfill your dreams.  When you set goals, set aside the time to accomplish them, then start working on them, you’re heading down the path of accomplishment.  A “Time Map” can help you reach your destination, your dream. 

Basic steps for setting up a “Time Map”

Cal Shook - Foliage - Newington, NH

Step 1:  List Your Dreams. 

What are your dreams?

My dreams are to finish my great Aunt Anna’s memoir by 2017 and to keep a well-balanced life in the process

Step 2:  List 5 to 6 Life Categories.

List "Life Categories" that will help you live the life you dream of. Some people find it helpful to color code these.

My list: 
Self (mind, body, and soul),

Family/Friends,

Home Maintenance,

Work,

Writing.

Step  3: How are you spending your time?

Take a close look at where you’re spending your time.

There are 168 hours in a week:

How much time are you spending in the "Life Categories" above?

I’ve used an app called "My Time", just to calculate where I’m spending my time.  This app adds whatever hour amount you put into a "Life Category", that you list, to a total at the top of the screen. Once completed, I realized why I wasn't moving forward.  I could now see that I wasn't spending enough time on the book.  I looked for a way to make this happen.

Step 4:  Where would you like to be spending more of your time?

Choose a “Life Category” you’d like to spend more time on.

Answer the following questions:

How can you spend more time in that area?

Does something have to go to make room?

Be creative.

I discovered that I wasn’t spending enough time "Writing" my Aunt Anna’s memoir.

The bulk of my schedule is my Communication Coordinator position.

Maybe giving up a TV show or two and getting to bed earlier could help?  I’m a morning person so adding a couple hours first thing in the morning seemed logical.   I decided to try getting to bed at 9pm and up at 5am.  I discovered that I couldn’t get to sleep that early.  I changed it to 10pm and got up at 6am.  It worked. It's giving me one to two hours of writing time each day, I am on my way to making the memoir a reality.  

Repeating these steps has helped me make time for "Family/Friends" in the middle of each weekday at lunchtime and on Saturdays.

How about you?
What are the things you are changing or can change to make your dreams come true?

To share your comments or this blog, see the links at the end of this post. 

For more on:
Spiritual Transformation -
"Calling Forth New Life", by Kirk Byron Jones at Amazon
Time Mapping -
“Time Management from the Inside Out” by Julie Morgenstern at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. 

Using Clutter to Your Advantage

Nervous Nellie's

Did you know that clutter serves a purpose?

Discover what it is doing for you and you’ll be able to use it to your advantage.

Having excelled at creating an environment of clutter in my youth, I brought it with me into adulthood.  It’s taken years of buying various containers and reshuffling the clutter out of one room only to have it wind up in another, before I found a workable solution. Discovering the “causes” of my clutter and taking “3 easy steps” have helped me free up space so I can find and use the things I possess.  These ideas are based on the principles in “Organizing from the Inside Out,” by Julie Morgenstern.

Causes

What is this clutter telling me?  What are the causes?

“Need for Abundance” – Being raised by parents who grew up during the depression, I’ve had a fear of going without. Stocking up on food was a regular occurrence.  Just recognizing this has helped me to buy more sensibly.

“Unclear Goals and Priorities” – This required that I sit down and think about what I want to accomplish. Now, it’s time to dream.  I have a passion for photography and would love to make money selling photos.  Therefore everything that would help me toward this purpose stays.  I am in the process of writing my great aunt Anna Bella’s memoir which I plan to complete by 2017. Having the research and all the support material accessible would aid in my being more productive toward this goal.

“Fear of Failure” – Fear that my writing won’t be good enough meant I needed to find a more comfortable and convenient place to write. Writing more will improve its quality.

“Sentimental Attachment” – This is a tough one, so much stuff and so many memories.  For bigger objects that there’s no space for I’ve decided to take pictures of the items to have as mementos. Using the pictures for my memories I am free to sell or donate these items. This will create more space.

3 easy steps

1. Analyze
2. Strategize
3. Attack

1.  Analyze

What’s working and what’s not?

During this phase, I discovered that I do much better organizing supplies like printer ink, copy paper, pens, etc.  I’m not good at filing; therefore papers tend to pile up. The supply cabinet was organized but my work space was not.

My study with its years of research consisting of boxes, books, newspapers, and writings were littering most of the space. Getting to the computer desk was a hazard. There’s a floor somewhere. Finding anything was almost impossible.

2.  Strategize – Create an Action Plan

What follows is a simple strategy for my study. This is where I work on the memoir and do my job as Communications Coordinator for York-Ogunquit Church.

First I mapped out the space, breaking it up into activity zones.

Computer zone: a long desk with drop down keyboard drawer and two computers. One is for my job and the other for the memoir. To make organizing and writing the memoir easier, I’ve purchased software called Scrivener and it’s working quite well.

Copier Zone – a cabinet with the Copier on top and the supplies in it.

Book Case – one shelf for books relating to the memoir, one for communications job books/manuals, and one for photography.

Two research zones – containing information for the memoir. One zone set off to the side on a shelving unit to be used as needed.  The other zone a table that will allow me to pull out then look through information needed for the current chapter that I’m working on.

A filing Zone with two separate file holders one for personal and one for work.

3.  Attack

Now the fun begins.

As I looked at the mess in front of me I took a deep breath.  My goal was to clear the floor in the easiest most effective way possible.  With the above plan, I sorted by section.  All research material in one pile. Books went on the shelves according to topic.  Paper work was sorted into piles – personal or work.  Before long, I found the floor.  I was able to use a folded up bookcase with wide shelves for the research zone. Once the computers were in place, I discovered that there wasn’t a convenient place for the phone.  I re-purposed a small square table that fits perfectly next to the desk.  There’s enough room for the phone, a pad of paper to record calls, and a pen.

I found the floor!  It’s now easier to work on the memoir and do my job.

My biggest hindrance to keeping this space up is filing.  I’m currently working on a simpler system to make this more manageable.

I’m on my way to fulfilling my dreams.

If you found this information helpful, let me know either on Facebook, Google+, or in the comments section below.

In the next blog I will share: “Time Clutter: a strategy for making time for the things that matter.”

“Organizing from the Inside Out” is available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble