Making Lists

I often have so many balls in the air that if I don't make lists, I can't remember anything! Do you make lists? Today I need to research property for two clients, call a new client about a listing, keep packing to move, move some boxes, hopefully get over to the new house to start putting the kitchen together, schedule some travel for a competition for Mason, meet Dave in W. Sac to shop for Mason's bedroom and maybe a couch, and pick up the moving truck. Oh, and did I mention we are moving?

Lists are also imperative to a good nights sleep. If I don't get all the stuff in my head on a piece of paper. I will lie in bed and my list of things to do will swirl furiously, the stuff I need to do, the stuff I didn't get done today, and the stuff I want to do. AHHH! All while Dave is blissfully sound asleep next to me, sometimes even before his head has hit the pillow. Is this a gender thing? Do women worry more about what needs to be done than men do? I think so, but I digress.

My point is just that I need to write shit down, I need it out of my head on on a piece of paper, and it has to be paper, if I put it in a note in my phone, I don't reference it. Although I do sometimes lose the piece of paper, or have more than one piece of paper that has some of the same things to do on both of them, but not everything on each. Sheesh! This is one big mess of a post about lists that are suppose to make my life less messy! Laughing!

Here I go, I'm going to make one list, on one piece of paper, that I will not lose, that will make me feel good each time I cross something off it as done. Now I need to figure out how to focus on doing just one thing at a time. And you? Lists?

Still Too Much!

Okay, I hear you! "I don't live near a lake and I don't have the cash right now to travel to take sailing lessons. Because of my current situation, it seems impossible for me to make sailing a part of my life." The Intentional Winning in Life way of thinking always finds a way.

Start small and simply make a list of all the ways to bring sailing into your life, don't let any considerations like time, money, or how close you live (or don't live) to a lake factor into the equation. Go back to my final post on all the Orange Roads to working with animals, you will see how many possibilities there really are. Put everything on your list from making the list, to creating a collage of every aspect of sailing, to even decorating a room in your house with a sailing motif. The idea is to get you thinking sailing, opening your mind to other ways to bring this dream back to life, all the way to just being stimulated visually with images in your home or work space. I will never believe that there is no way to get started, I simply know there are too many ways to get the ball rolling. So hop to it! Get going! You can do it!

"I'm A Yes Man!" - Guest Writer Amie Chilson

On my 32nd birthday I found myself stuck on the JFK tarmac for two extra hours due to a weather delay, en route to Madrid. After playing the, “It’s my birthday” card with the flight attendants, scoring a few free mini bottles of wine, I sat back and started the solo movie marathon on my way over the Atlantic: it was “Yes Man” starring Jim Carrey.

If you haven’t seen it yet…go rent it today! Through its silliness and moments of expected Jim Carey hilarity, the underlying message struck a chord with me. Carey plays a middle-aged, loan officer who leads an unextraordinary life and is accustomed to saying “no” to everything. He’s begun to alienate friends, never moves ahead in his career, and has developed a bad habit of closing himself off to life and all its opportunities. After attending a self-help seminar where attendees make a covenant to say “Yes” to everything…and anything, his life begins to transform in amazing and unexpected ways.

At face value, this flick is a predictably fun, brand of 90-minute, Jim Carey comedy. (And anyone who knows me knows I shy away from the Hollywood drool of endless, formulaic films!) Yet, I chose to watch the film 2.5 times and laughed like an idiot throughout–but why? Because I am “Yes Man” and have recently built my lifestyle around this value system.

2008 was a tough year for me in several ways; I buried two grandmothers, closed both my companies down, and nearly went bankrupt. I retreated into my metaphorical cave and shut down to most of the world. At the end of the year I vowed to make 2009 incredible and milk the most out of every day, while being open to the universe and all it had to offer. I created a “101 Things To Do in 2009” list, naming items as simple as: sampling more international cheeses, indulging in a house cleaner, and reading the Declaration of Independence, to more loftier goals such as visiting Thailand, completing my scuba certification and hiking the Grand Canyon. (The list was easier to develop than I thought…which means subconsciously lurking were all these things I’ve always wanted to experience, learn, and try!) Never again did I want to waste a year, and look back regretfully to say, “Damn, I didn’t do any of the things I wanted to accomplish! Where did the year go? And how utterly unremarkable it was…”

Since I made that covenant with myself at the end of 2008, my life has been purely magical! I recently took my husband on a wonderful month-long vacation to Spain where most of our lodging across the country was free; I’ve been invited to vacation in Fiji , Mexico , and India to study with a renowned Guru. Business opportunities have flooded my gates, I’ve met many new people and made wonderful friends, I find myself in great health and training for one of the hardest Triathlons nationwide, and I live each day with such zest and fascination. Sometimes it feels as if I’ve lived 3 days to the actual 1. As for the 101 List of To Do Items… I’ve been happily knocking them down by the dozens, and even created an ancillary 101 List!

What I’ve learned about myself during this 6-month experiment of saying “Yes to Life” is when I embrace being ‘open’, I expect something good to happen every time and it does. Being authentically ‘open’ also has forced me to become more empathic, less selfish, and more compassionate to others. It’s removed the ability to go through life ‘half-ass’ which is an easy to rut to fall into. We become busy, get comfortable, and even ease into laziness. (I know I did!) The good news is it is simple to pull ourselves out of the “No” coma. It’s as easy as saying “Yes” to little things, like smiling back at a stranger, answering an Unknown Caller ID phone call, or meeting your inbox of Evites with hopefulness vs. impatience.

In the movie, “Yes Man”, Carey changes his life in a matter of weeks and welcomes many new life experiences, people, and opportunities. In addition to falling in love, he gets promoted in his career, reconnects with his friends and inspires many different individuals. His unremarkable life has radically transformed, and he is a happier man for it. Carey also learns there is such a thing as ‘balance’ to strike in life with being constantly open to life and opportunities.

And that balance is important to keep in mind, as agreeing to all things is unreasonable and potentially dangerous. As I find myself mentally and verbally saying, “Yes” to most opportunities that flow my way, I still exercise instinct, fiscal prudence and my own version of life harmony. I will ignore the invite to pierce my nipples, not join a cult, and not invest all my money in what resembles a Ponzi scheme.

What I will do, is wake up tomorrow morning and breathe in the delicious moment of NOW, and energetically say “Yes” to what life has to offer me because I know it will be fantastic! I suggest you try it: who knows, the next “Yes” you say could lead to meeting the person of your dreams, making a new best friend, drop the next incredible business opportunity in your lap, or inspire your biggest idea ever.

Be a “Yes Man” with me.

http://myexistentialmusings.wordpress.com

Much Gratitude,
Amie Chilson

What Is Your Intention For This Day?

Do you ever think like that? Do you actually intend for your day to be something specific? I do.

It's like your "to do" list only it's specifically about the energy of your day. I'm a list person. I might think it's because I'm getting older and my memory is not as sharp as it used to be, but I've always been a list maker. If I put it on my list, it likely gets done in a timely fashion. I can go about the tasks in my day not having to worry about forgetting anything. As I finish one, I go cross it off my list and start the next task.

I do this as I start each day in terms of, "what are my intentions for today?" I can review my list from yesterday and see what needs to happen, and I take a peek at my calendar and see where I need to be, and from there, I have a pretty good feel of what my intentions are for this special day.

Today I have a long list of things I need to do. I've already finished several of them.

My intention for today is to serve enough people with what I know that will help them, and in turn, see that energy flow back to me in terms of freelance writing work and Virtual Assistant projects.

In essence, you could say I'm listening to the wonderful Zig Ziglar, "You can have anything you want as long as you help enough other people get what they want." I love it.

Now, how can I help you?