Stephen’s Day

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Comments

[Ulla Hennig]

Rosa,
I just read Living Mahalo with my Dailies and I sit in awe - a mixture of "I could never do that - I could never be that structured and organized and planning" and "oh, I would like to be like Rosa Say! Or at least I would like to be a bit like her". Can you understand that feeling?

[Rosa Say]

Bless your heart Ulla, I am not always sure that I want to keep being like me! With Stephen’s Day you are getting a pretty good look into the more obsessive part of my personality, for I have always been a planner and organizational nut through and through.

Just remember that I have never done everything on my list in a single day; highly doubtful that it is possible (or would be enjoyable if it was), but it works magnificently in these two respects for me:

1. I never ask myself, "what shall I do now?" without an answer immediately apparent (I can't stand just standing around) and much more important,

2. Mahalo is the key word. I am supremely thankful and appreciative that I am able to try!

[Joanna Young]

Ulla, thank you for sharing the conversation about this comment on twitter. You made me come back to read this again.

Your comments are so refreshingly honest and direct - I don't know how many times I've seen you get straight to the heart of the matter.

Anyway, I was smiling broadly when I read your comment here.

I had left Rosa's post to cook my tea, thinking to myself, "I'd never be able to commit to so many dailies, I struggle to stick to one, that sort of thing isn't me". To which I countered "but wouldn't you want to be more like Rosa, even a bit?"

To which the answer was... yes, in grace, and charm... but perhaps not at the expense of sacrificing my glorious disorganisation :-)

Rosa, apologies for talking over you - I figured you'd understand.

[Rosa Say]

Oh Joanna, you and Ulla both give me countless ways to wonder, smile and laugh, and when it is a laughing at myself it is doubly scrumptious, mahalo. Not only do I understand, you know I absolutely love and cherish the thought!

[Ulla Hennig]

Joanna and Rosa,
I think the important thing is that learning from each other doesn't mean doing it the same way, but looking how and what is the appropriate thing for oneself. I am still reflecting on the dailies, and the important thing for me is, to look for chores, work, etc. which a) should be done regularly, each day, and b) should be done in time chunks. Filing papers is something I deeply abhor, but I can convince myself that I can do it for a period of 15 minutes, using my cell phone for a reminder. On the other hand I tend to lose myself when reading and commenting on blogs or tweeting. Cutting that consciously down to say 60 min and going offline then might be quite helpful for me...

[Rosa Say]

Absolutely Ulla; I recommend the practice of composing one's dailies as a personal exercise, and we all have different variables we are keeping in balance. As one example, when I do this with those I coach, it is often readily apparent who are morning people and who are the night owls, and how that one distinction affects so much of their productivity habits.

You mention another which was a biggie for me: Going offline. I can trace my glitch back to when I started using Firefox as my browser, and developed the habit of opening so many tabs - translation: distractions and deep rabbit holes! Now I close all my internet windows and go offline completely when I am in the throes of focused work - so it stays focused!