Becoming a Planner: 5 Things Daily

About 10 days ago I realized I needed a consistency spree.

During this Corona season (will it be a seasonal thing?) I’ve had a lot of questions and I haven’t really been able to answer them. I ask a question, answer it a bit, then I float off into ethereal thoughts, not landing on anything solid.

I realized I needed consistency, routine, habit, something solid I could stand on to find solid answers.

This isn’t something I always need, and often I find myself without goals, with out too much planning, moving in a direction, daily, figuring it out on the fly.

This is tbd for if it’s the best, generally, probably in some ways but probably not in others, but about halfway through ‘Rona I realized I needed the solid foundation.

So I committed to doing five things daily, for one month.

1. Sweat

2. Meditate

3. Journal

4. Read

5. Publish

For sweating, I run. I’ve been running off and on for probably a year. To match my non-goals approach, I hardly ever time it, don’t track the distance and don’t really care about measuring it. Did I sweat? That’s all that counts.

For meditating I just take some time to sit. I first learned to meditate when I was about 19 so I’ve been doing it for a while, so I just take some time to breathe, let ideas slide through my mind and remember that I’m just here, now.

Journaling means Morning Pages, basically free writing three sheets of blank paper… and I love it. New Year’s Eve my friend Sophie challenged me to do a month straight and I started shortly after. I usually do it first thing in the morning, slowly letting the words flow, usually with lots of confusion and jumbled thoughts and recap style journaling. By always by the middle of page three I have answers I didn’t know I needed.

I’ve cranked up on reading during this Corona Virus shutdown time. I used to be a big reader but in recent years haven’t, so this time felt like a good season to recommit. Though I’ve read a lottttt of business books, I kind of hate them. My mind ends up runnnnning with thoughts of how I can apply the theories and I just feel too energized… and I don’t need more theories, which is just what they are. Thoughts, assumptions, practices that have worked for others… I don’t need that, I’m making my own. Instead, I’ve turned to memoirs and biographies. I’m more interested in how people lived, the choices they made, the experiences they endured. I absolutely loved Shoe Dog by Phil Knight. Never Fade Away was really inspiring. The Lion in the White House was amazing.

Publishing means a blog a day. I’m getting back into the swing of sharing, of talking, of teaching… though not so much teaching yet. I have a lot to teach, but not quite yet. To get there, I’m just talking. Thoughts, ideas, reflections, just writing and putting it out there to find my voice.

Now on day 7, at almost 9:00 at night, I’m working on the last one: publishing…. I let it slide today but wanted to make it happen, because “consistency”.