Accumulation
“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” — Stephen R. Covey
This writing is Certified Human
The Obstacle
From the time we wake up until we go to bed, things accumulate. They accumulate hour by hour, day by day, month by month.
Many seemingly urgent tasks, obligations, and distractions stack up over time. Each one by itself does not seem like much, but eventually the weight becomes untenable.
We find ourselves carrying too much and multitasking too often. We become distracted, anxious, frustrated, and irritable because we can't possibly get it all done.
Our performance and relationships suffer under the strain, and focusing our attention on any one thing becomes almost impossible.
The Gift and Opportunity
We can shed the weight, close the browser windows, put the phone on Do Not Disturb, pause emails, schedule conversations, close our doors, and evaluate what's actually urgent against what just seems so.
We can prioritize our days and how we give our attention so too much does not accumulate.
We can pause now and then, taking inventory of what's accumulated and how important it actually is.
We can intentionally monitor what stacks up in our lives and decide whether it's worthy of making the cut for our attention.
The Practice of Self-Mastery
• Take inventory
• Decide what matters
• Shed what doesn't
• Focus our attention
CHEAT CODE: INVENTORY → DECIDE → SHED → FOCUS
The Why
Like most of us, I live in a complicated and busy world. There are always more demands than there is time for.
Deciding what's important, what can wait, and what can be said no to is a practice I have to return to every day, every hour.
I am restless and distractible by nature. Living in the modern world without constraints, I would be constantly running and shifting attention from one thing to the next.
When I'm able to inventory my day and where my attention goes, I'm much better able to focus on what's important and knock those things out without getting dragged into the pit of unending demands.
When I do this, my performance on the important tasks skyrockets, and I am less anxious in my life and more present in my relationships.
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