Chapter 10 Stop Juggling and Start Livinig

Ironically, this exercise came up this week.

My post in The Life and Times of the Contessa, titled "90 Miles an hour with my hair on fire" so aptly applies to this particular chapter.

Maybe my subconscious had something to do with it....

This week suggested that most of us juggle and keep a lot of balls in the air at one time. Just imagine Michelle Pfeifer in "One Fine Day".... She describes has life as having all these balls in the air and everything is working JUST FINE, thank you very much, and she couldn't possibly accept help and most especially NOT from George Clooney.

So you get the idea.

Cheryl Richardson suggests that we select one of the following list of balls and drop it:

Trying to please everyone

Trying to have everyone like you

Trying to be the star at the expense of your own life

Trying to do everything perfectly

Trying to do everything

Your reliance on adrenaline

So this week, I chose "Trying to have everyone like you."

Why ? you may ask. Why THAT item. Especially when those who know me know that I have a problem with every single one these balls.

Well it's like domino's. If I take care of "Trying to have everyone like me", I will also be able to better control "Trying to please everyone", "Trying to do everything" and "Trying to be the star at the expense of your own life".

So The next item I have to deal with is also explaining the way it plays into my life. Well, as explained many ways and times in the Life and times of, I am a people pleaser which is generally fueled with needing to be liked.

It's kind of weird that I feel this way because, in general, I am well liked. I have always had no trouble making and keeping friends. I have friends form evey phase of my life from Pre-K to my most current activities. So why is this so important to me when it comes so naturally?

The question should really be, for those that do not like me, why do I care? It has more to do my self esteem than anything else, why can I win over 9 out of 10 people and not the 10th? What's wrong with me that I don't win over the 10th?

So this week, I am going to try focusing on the good friends and people I do have in my life and worrying less about the ones that aren't.

I don't need to find the negative reasons why this person shouldn't be in my life, but I do find that I should look at the negatives as to why we aren't compatable as a reason.

I will give you an example. There is a person I know. Lovely, intelligent, caring, a wonderful and special person, we have so much in common but there's one habit I can't abide by. It bothers me that it was their decision not to continue the friendship, but I would have done the same thing in my own time and in fact, have.

And I see it as a personal failing.

So I am now choosing to look at this situation, not as a failing but more as a success to know who and what kind of people I want in own inner circle.

Chapter 9 The power of Focus

My challenge this week is to determine whether I am focused or do I need to improve that.

The suggested exercise is one I have actaully been doing relatively ongoing. Each week I am to pick one project and devote a specific, scheduled amount of time to it. without mulitasking.

Now for those of you who like those meme's - the question that's on most of them that makes me laugh is "Do you juggle" and my answer is always - every single day. My job is all about the multitasking.

I can't dramatically alter that, though on my major project that is starting to ramp up I am no longer multitasking on those calls. I am fully plugged in and engaged as my portion is coming up quickly.

So what I have decided to do is a two pronged approach. I will be unplugging for the project loosely referred to as SSBP each week to do a certain amount of work on it as well as the project called GRIID. On a personal note, I will be unplugging and putting my full attention on my 30 minute exercize each day. Nothing will be interefering with that. It is now scheduled on my work calendar as an appointment so no one can overbook.

Chapter 8 What's Fueling you

This week my take action challenge was to be aware of behaviour patterns that keep me hooked on andrenaline.

Here's my list:

1. I spend entirely too much time on the computer.
2. My schedule is very tight.
3. Health issues

One new habit I will cultivate this week is working on my health issues. I am trying to put more activity into my lifestyle. I am eating healthier, taking supplements, managing my meds and my skin and allergies. I am getting the required rest ( and then some).

My action plan is;

1. Walk 30 minutes Monday through Friday.
2. Drink 48 ounces of water between 9-5
3. Keep my vitamin/med schedule consistent
4. Add Yoga on Friday nights.

I get so excited at the end of each Chapter.

Five Energy Drains

I have been looking around for my five energy drains.

I don't want to fix what's not broken so I am really focusing on what would be helpful in not draining my life.

1. Organization. Not just in general terms. My file cabinet needs to be reviewed and reworked. The drawers of my desk are not being used adequately. My closets are just holding places for stuff.

I plan to start working on this this weekend. I plan to start with the coat closet in the hall. Second job will be the file cabinet and desk. THen the hall closets and linen closet. I am targetting the next few weekends and maybe a day or two off from work to start the process. I will buy the tools needed to support these changes.

2. Weight. This is a big one and its an energy drain and an emotional drain all wrapped up in one. I have made major strides already in correcting this. My plans to continue include walking 2-3 miles M-F. Any day that I skip will need to be made up on the weekend. I need to start eating wholesome foods, more veggies, less process foods. Vitamins, minerals all that. I have a good resource in Weight Watchers so that's my tool if I hit a bump in the road. I have a great network of friends for this as well.

3. Clutter in my car. THis is a toughy. I use my car as another closet during the week. I just toss stuff in the car and hope for the best. I need to get a couple of caddy's and bins to organize my music that I need to keep in the car and my CD's and that sort of thing. I need to make time to vacuum it and clear it more frequently. This starts when it warms up - right now it's dangerous to be outside in the deep freeze for long periods of time.

4. Maintenance of the car. This includes oil changes, license, registration, insurance,. inspection etc. Currently I am in jep of not being able to re-register my car come May because I need to get the vehicle inspected - no great shakes there. I have some financial mantainance to take care of as well and thats been started. All of this needs to be done by the end of March.

5. Last but not least, my home. I have furniture I don't want here, I have furniture elsewhere that I do. I want to get my home completed. I have half dozen half finished projects that I need to wrap up. I have to schedule some time and a due date and schedule the people I need to do the jobs. I have a mirror that needs to be hung, one that needs to come down, a bookcase and love seat to remove, a chaise lounge to move in, a chest to move out. A painting to hang, a light fixture to hang, paint the wall where the mirror is. repaint the ceilings, purchase new air conditioners.

For each task that I complete I will be scheduling a facial. When all five are completed I will splurge for a full day of spa treatments at the local Day Spa.