This Train

Well, I've made it through an entire week after being discharged from the hospital. I've been doing some thinking about my uncertain future, and I was feeling that my life was being put on hold, as I wait to see if I will respond to my treatment or not.

But then I decided that I need to get my life together NOW and just carry on with all my plans and goals (so far as I am able to in my present condition). I'm NOT going to wait until I get better, I'm just going to proceed anyhow, damn the torpedoes! No self-pity or despair for me; I have things to accomplish!

Providentially, I just happened to be reading an interesting article in The Atlantic (Jul/Aug 2004) by James Fallow titled "Organize Your Life!". It was about a business consultant named David Allen, who makes a ton of $$$ teaching people how to maximize productivity and get things done. Yeah, I know, I've tried many other systems before (e.g. Covey) and I've never managed to stick with any one in particular. But it was not so much the methodology per se that caught my attention ...

Rather, it was this remark that jolted me into reflection and action: "The more important the goal (fix your marriage, get a better job), the easier it is to procrastinate, because people don't know just where to start." (p. 173). The key words for me were: important, procrastinate and start.

So, I dug out my binder and made my own time management system, using some of Allen's insights where appropriate. I have a section for "Projects", to help keep me focused on a few big projects that I have in mind (to do with church, family and my personal spiritual growth). This is exciting!!