18 Minutes–and a New Plan of Action

This is a post I started writing in September, and have finally returned to, but now with two months of history, so I think the delay was a good thing.

I suppose it’s because I spent 37 years in a classroom, but September always seems like a good time for a fresh start. In August, I noticed one of Sarah’s Good Read posts for a book called 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done. 

When Sarah gives a book 4 or 5 stars, I always pay attention. (Unless, of course, it’s one of her dystopian novels which are definitely not my thing.) Our library had a copy and I picked it up on the way to the pool a couple of weeks ago. My friend, Tina, leafed through it, and said, “You don’t need this book!” But she was so wrong. Although it’s intended for business people, there were lots of applications for someone who’s retired as well.

I’ve been playing around with the concept of block scheduling for the last year or so. In an effort to make it work, I purchased The Action Day planner in early April. Every Sunday I sat down and filled in all my out-of-the-house commitments. It helped me see where the blocks of free time were each week, but I still wasn’t getting a good balance of the things I need and want to do completed each week. Sometimes I filled in the empty spaces with specific projects, but not always. Since reading this book, I’ve been much more intentional in how I fill my calendar, and much more productive. Things still slide by. I’m four months behind with my Project Life pages, but it never leaves my mind because each week, there it is under the Projects category.

So, today—November 5—I woke up thinking about a presentation being given this morning, and trying to decide if I wanted to give up two hours of my day for it. Suddenly, I remembered my Five Annual Focuses and knew right away that it wasn’t a priority. And then, remembered this blog post and decided to finish it up!

Bregman’s first task is to have you identify five or six areas that are important to you. When you’re deciding how you’ll spend your time, if it doesn’t fall under one of those areas, you probably should pass on it. I have a list of things I want to do, want to learn, and care about. Gathering them together into broader categories took a bit of thinking. I’m still not sure that everything is just where it should be, but it helps me think about where I want to spend my time. This morning I redid it for this blog post and made a few revisions. I used one of Bregman’s printouts available on his website to write out my five categories, and put a piece of Washi tape over the title that doesn’t match its purpose.

Here’s a look at this week’s Action Day Planner pages. It’s been a busier week than usual, probably because we were away for 10 days. Nonetheless, I’ve started a new Self-Directed Study project each morning that I’m home, and have done a daily sketch (I started again on October 1 and have managed to keep it up.) My Christmas cards are more than half done, and I’m finally back to working on Project Life. You can see that I’ve changed up some of the headings to meet my needs. I’ve also learned not to plan each day’s activities too far ahead. I usually do it first thing in the morning. SDS stands for Self-Directed Study (more about that coming soon), PL is Project Life, and Midtown is our gym. Names typically indicate an appointment or meeting. Voices is a weekly discussion group at our church. Everything else is self-explanatory. (I write in pencil which doesn’t photograph well.)

I also wrote out some of the key points (for me) from the book, and find it helpful to look back on them:

• “Failure is inevitable, useful, and educational. Just don’t give up—stay focused over the year—and it will pay off.”
• “Create an environment that compels you to do the things you want to do.” For me that’s keeping my sketchbook on my desk in front of me, and my supplies for card making and Project Life easily accessible, and easy to put away. (Having a neat workspace is critical for my productivity. If I don’t clean my desk before I go to bed, it’s the first thing I do in the morning.)
• “You need to be motivated for only a few seconds. Know when you’re vulnerable, and you’ll know when you need to turn it on.” (Critical for my desire to snack at odd times in the day. I need to stop, and focus on a new task, and move on!)
• “Don’t forget to schedule transition time; it can help make the next task shorter, faster, and more productive.” (I don’t actually show transition time, but I account for it when I schedule.)
• “Don’t multi-task.”
• “The world doesn’t reward perfection. It rewards productivity.” 

I’m always interested in how people plan their time, and organize their projects, so I hope something here will interest you as well.