Spring Cleaning #30: Take a Load Off Our Drives

Having done the exercises in #30: placing a file on the S: drive and then removing it; attempting to better organize the P: drive and any files I put there; and cleaning up the photos by posting them on Flickr; and finally deleting no longer needed files/pictures on my Z: drive and organizing the remaining files, I can just confirm what I already knew about my obsessive complusive self. I like to have a neat and organized area in which to work. At home I have a routine that I unconsciously follow that keeps my house tidy (I didn't say clean necessarily but tidy). It keeps everyday things from piling up, it doesn't however keep the hardwood floors spotless. But it is vital for me because waking up to a clean empty kitchen counter helps me feel energized and ready to start breakfast and lunch packing for everyone. Also knowing that everything is in its place when I leave for work in the am; dishes are done, laundry put away, dog walked and fed, I am able then to mentally leave it all behind and feel ready to start work. This way I am not revisiting; Did I remember to mail the bill on the counter? Did I send the note to school with my daughter? If you do it the first time instead of setting it aside you save yourself a lot of time and freeing up not only physical space and digital space but also memory space in your own mind.

"Affection is desirable. Money is absolutely indispensable!"
- Mrs. Austen played by Julie Walters in Becoming Jane.

Spring Cleaning #29: Email

I have had a personal email account since about 1988 and it's been the same address for the majority of those years. What can I say I'm not necessarily brand loyal but it's too much of a hassle to change.
For my work email account I have created folders for the different tasks I perform and emails I keep (i.e. training, iHCPL, proctoring exams, ILL information). I don't really keep many emails as I almost always do something with an email as soon as I read it. I either act on it, delete it or file it for reference to later. I have found that if you do this at least once a day when you check your email it is easier to keep up with and not so overwhelming. I do the same with my regular mail. I open it and decide if it's something to read and throw away, read and act on, or read and file for later use and I do one of those three things immediately. So generally on a daily basis I don't have a clutter problem. Of course when your routine is altered as in the case of illness or vacation it may take a little more attention to get caught up but not as much as if you don't let it get out of control to begin with.

Rendition

"I fear you speak upon the rack, where men enforced do speak anything."
- William Shakespeare (1564–1616), British dramatist, poet. Portia, in The Merchant of
Venice, act 3, sc. 2, l. 32-3.

Watched the movie Rendition last night and throughly enjoyed it. Extraordinary Rendition refers to the practice of transporting terrorist suspects from the country where they are captures to their home country or to other countries where they can be questioned of held for the purpose of gathering intelligence or to face trial. Its use by the United States expanded dramatically after September 11, 2001. The movie will give you something to think about as you may see a different perspective as a result. Make sure you watch the short documentary following the film. For more information on Extraordinary Rendition check out FRONTLINE.

"I believe in music the way some people believe in fairy tales." from August Rush

Schweppes Burst

Spring Cleaning #28: Don’t Clutter Up Expensive Cyberspace

When GTD was mentioned as part of iHCPL (first generation) I checked it out and read the book. Some favorite quotes from the book:
"Rule your mind or it will rule you." - Horace

"This constant, unproductive preoccupation with all the things we have to do is the single largest consumer of time and energy." - Kerry Gleason

"your ability to generate power is directly proportional to your ability to relax." - David Allen

"There is one thing we can do, and the happiest people are those who can do it to the limit of their ability. We can be completely present. We can be all here. We can...give all our attention to the opportunity before us." - Mark Van Doren

"Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape." - Michael McGriffy, M.D.

I also read Go Put Your Strengths to Work by Marcus Buckingham. His 6 step discipline for putting your strengths to work are:
1. Bust the Myths
2. Get clear
3. Free your strengths
4. Stop your weaknesses
5. Speak up
6. Build strong habits
No Ah ha moments when reading this book as it all seemed like common sense to me but good to think about nonetheless. You can also go to http://www.simplystrengths.com/ for more information.

I also tried an online calendar however I found it harder to keep in front of me than my regular Franklin planner which I love. There are just too many instances when technology doesn't work and I am unable to access the calendar. For instance when we returned from Christmas in Indiana we came home to a computer with a "fried" motherboard which we are still trying to get fixed and it is March 11th! and another computer with a "fried" hard drive. Luckily it was one of the kids computers so therefore there wasn't anything of real value stored on it that was lost as a result. At work I take my lunch away from all technology to give my eyes a break and read written material instead. So for me I much prefer my Franklin planner to an online calendar.