By Kimberly Bryant
Real life happens all day long. If you're burned out at your desk, I'd venture to say you're also burned out at home--as in spending too much time on the couch without the motivation to do much more. Relationships probably aren't all that satisfying, either. And you surely don't have time to consider how else you might contribute to the world. Well, what if you could be happy all day long and know for sure that your work is enough? It's possible, and here are some ways to get there.
Create a vacuum
Most of us don't know what we really want, but we do know what bugs us. What do you complain about regularly? Try eliminating projects and relationships that clearly aren't what you want. Let go of an activity or a habit that doesn't serve you well. Continue to practice the art of saying, "No, thank you." Doing these things creates room for opportunities and magic. In other words, it creates a vacuum to be filled by the grace of the universe.
To help you, create a To Do List category called Dump List of all the things you want to eliminate from your life. Then check them off as you get rid of them.
How do you know what they are? Look back over your Date Book for the past few months and see how you've been spending your time. Look at the next month or so and see what you've got planned. Is there anything you're dreading? Notice what feelings come up when you look over your appointments and it may be clearer what you want to let go of.
Your company can benefit from these same principles. A common complaint among corporate workers is that more tasks are added whenever management implements "new-and-improved" programs. Haven't you noticed how tasks are rarely deleted? One of my favorite organizational change models involves asking front-line people which procedures or tasks they feel are a waste of their time. Under the right conditions, they'll tell you what isn't working.
If you're a manager, be sure to ask regularly. Asking each employee to use his or her Palm device to keep track of daily accomplishments for a few weeks and identify time-sinks might bring some of these wasteful tasks to light. A quarterly feedback forum will help keep jobs lean and allow more flexibility when opportunities arise.
You can use WeSync to create a community Dump List of wasteful procedures and tasks. Everyone in the work group can contribute their thoughts, and the manager can download the list from the WeSync Web site in order to address the issues. For more information on how WeSync works, visit the Web site at http://www.wesync.com or read the review in the January 2000 issue of PalmPower at http://www.palmpower.com/issues/issue200001/pda001.html.
