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July 21, 2009

Get In Gear Newsletter

in this issue

on pushing, pulling and two kinds of control

classes

never on a sunday
a new Bite the Candy series to help you take back your weekend

bite the candy
come bite through procrastination with us

true discipline of time management
enrollment for the fall session is now open

   
on the blog

a note from Cairene

hammock

Welcome new subscribers!
Whether you found Third Hand Works through Jennifer Louden's Comfort Cafe, APLD's Annual Conference, or another path - I'm delighted you are here!

 

  

As fantabulous as 2009 has been so far (thank you), I feel like I've spent much of the first half of the year trying to keep up with all the excitement while learning a sustainable rhythm of work and play - coming to understand how to pace myself only by going way way too far with over-work (actually to the point of injury - ouch).

Play seems like it should come naturally, but it turns out that if you practice working all the time, you get really good at it. Even when I've been ready and willing to take a time-out, I've discovered that I've sort of forgotten how. Which is a total bummer.

I love my work. In many ways, it is playful. But nevertheless, my days and weeks need to include time when I'm not thinking or worrying about my business.

So I've decided to take back the weekend.

I'm finding that remembering how to relax, be silly, goof off, and otherwise putter around requires deliberate intention. I cannot rely on mood or habit, as they have become so skewed towards work. To take back the weekend, I have to create conditions and an environment that will foster play.

It takes a little extra time and attention at the end of the week, but it has been completely worth it. I can feel myself springing back to life - kind of like one of those pop-up sponges.

It seems everywhere I turn, I'm encountering people in the same situation, wearing themselves out with devotion to their growing enterprises - not allowing themselves a breather until physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually exhausted.

You may be one of them.

If you are, I invite you to take back the weekend along with me.

 

classes

never on a sunday
A special Bite the Candy series: Because the only thing tastier than finishing? Time in which you don't have to finish anything at all...

• Fridays, August 7, 14 & 21 > early bird ends Thursday, July 23 [details & registration]

bite the candy
Have some fun finishing something you've been putting off and discover the treats at the bottom of your to-do list.

• next sessions: Thursdays, July 30 and August 27 [details & registration]

the true discipline of time management
Become a Time Disciple with me! By the end of the year, you could be on your way to calm, prepared, energized, confident - and ready for anything.

• enrollment for the fall session is now open [details & registration]

 

on pushing, pulling and two kinds of control

There is a "push hard" school of getting things done. It's the place where you play a bigger game and take yourself to the next level and commit to excellence and all that.

Makes me tired just to write that.

It's not entirely mistaken. It does help to maintain a certain degree of motivation and self-discipline. But... sigh. I think we can get things done without the hard - or the pushing for that matter.

When I was in college, I participated in a student organization that held an annual festival. Planning that event was a ton of work. All the decision-making, coordination and attention to detail required real tenacity over many weeks and months.

I remember observing, "Most people don't realize what it takes to make something happen.

"This is what it takes to make something happen."

I think advocates of the "push hard" school of getting things done are just trying to help people understand what it takes to make something happen. They are trying to communicate the necessity of that tenacity, of consistent persistence.

But once you grasp that, once you understand what is required, I'm not persuaded that pushing is the thing to emphasize.

At least not when you are applying consistent persistence to work that you love. When you are doing your thing - you know, your thing - doing what's necessary for its success seems, well, obvious. I mean, isn't that what you are already doing?

And I think this is why so many solopreneurs work so darn much. We know what it takes and we care about our work an awful lot, so we keep at it. And at it. And at it.

But it's not pushing. It's being pulled.

It's being compelled to do the work by our passion for it.

When my husband, dog and I visit the nearby river beach, if it's a windy day, we often see kite-boarders there doing their beautiful crazy thing with the wind on the water. It obviously takes a lot of strength and skill. Because without them, it's pretty clear you could lose control and wipe out big time.

Being pulled forward by your business is equally thrilling, but it takes similar strength and skill. Without them, it's easy to wipe out as spectacularly as those kite-boarders can. You need control, but a very different kind of control than what is promoted by the push hard advocates.

What strengths and skills do you need to develop to be pulled forward by your business without losing control, so you can enjoy the ride without wiping out?

A couple things come to mind from watching those kite-boarders: don't sail alone and take breaks. Both of which you can do in the upcoming special Bite the Candy series: Never on a Sunday - in which we take back the weekend and learn to finish what we need to finish so we can get a day (or two) of rest.

 

recently on the blog

Order from Influence | my favorite new organizing technique
Work According to the Seasons | in which I rave about Waverly Fitzgerald's book
Was It Really Procrastination? | flow begets flow - motion, any motion, creates momentum
Choosing a Less Apologetic Story | because you and I are enough - it’s all good enough
Unplugging to Recharge | to recharge my batteries, I need to plug into something else

 

let's chat

Like what you've read? Irked? Confused? Have a suggestion? Got a question? Let's start a conversation. I'd love to hear from you - send me a line, comment on the blog, or follow me on Twitter.

 

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Unless otherwise attributed, all material is written and edited by Cairene MacDonald.
© 2009 Cairene MacDonald, Third Hand Works. All rights reserved.

Cairene MacDonald
Third Hand Works
PO Box 31113
Portland, OR 97231
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organization and time management for people in their "right" minds

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