Life Design - What and Why?
I have observed that I perform highly in a structured setting, where my goals are clearly articulated and I am fully committed to them. For example, in the Air Cadets I decided that I was going to work hard to gain promotion to the leadership position of Corporal. Within a year, I achieved this goal, before aiming for promotion to Sergeant. The combination of goals, motivation, opportunities and experiences in the cadets resulted in my flourishing. I achieved a lot and really grew as a person.
In school, my teachers often spoke about my "potential". I am a very keen learner, passionate about learning a wide range of topics and building a broad perspective on the world. However, I found the majority of the education system to be abhorrent, focused more on listening and remembering than understanding and enquiring. I was not motivated to "succeed" - working hard to get a few certificates did not make me any more intelligent. In hindsight, perhaps if I had worked harder then I could get on a Graduate Scheme for a bank or consultancy firm or something... or maybe it's just as well I didn't!
This project is my commitment to live up to my potential in effective and meaningful ways. I am consciously creating a joyful and abundant life in which I make a real difference upon the world.
Wikipedia tells me that a design is: "a roadmap or a strategic approach for someone to achieve a unique expectation. It defines the specifications, plans, parameters, costs, activities, processes and how and what to do within legal, political, social, environmental, safety and economic constraints in achieving that objective."The life design is my roadmap for an epic journey through life.
By the end of this project, I will have a routine to follow, with time committed to improving myself and my lifestyle.
In school, my teachers often spoke about my "potential". I am a very keen learner, passionate about learning a wide range of topics and building a broad perspective on the world. However, I found the majority of the education system to be abhorrent, focused more on listening and remembering than understanding and enquiring. I was not motivated to "succeed" - working hard to get a few certificates did not make me any more intelligent. In hindsight, perhaps if I had worked harder then I could get on a Graduate Scheme for a bank or consultancy firm or something... or maybe it's just as well I didn't!
This project is my commitment to live up to my potential in effective and meaningful ways. I am consciously creating a joyful and abundant life in which I make a real difference upon the world.
Wikipedia tells me that a design is: "a roadmap or a strategic approach for someone to achieve a unique expectation. It defines the specifications, plans, parameters, costs, activities, processes and how and what to do within legal, political, social, environmental, safety and economic constraints in achieving that objective."The life design is my roadmap for an epic journey through life.
By the end of this project, I will have a routine to follow, with time committed to improving myself and my lifestyle.
Goals/Expectations
I will copy through some of my goals and expectations from the Diploma Pathway, since the diploma itself is a vehicle to assist my journey.
- Life is fun, exciting, and rich with experience
- I am happy and fulfilled
- I create many opportunities for personal, professional and spiritual growth
- I use my time in effective and productive ways
- My positive effect on the world is growing
- I use action learning techniques
- I have diverse skills to master life and its challenges
- I grow in a balanced and holistic way, whilst using disequilibrium and constructive chaos to accelerate change
Observations
- I achieve a lot in a structured setting
- I am full of ideas and inspiration, but struggle to bring these through to reality
- I think more than do
- When I start doing, I fill myself with doubt. "Is this good enough?", "Will this work?", "Am I wasting my time?"
- I struggle to make much progress on a project before I am off with 100 new ideas to try out!
- I also have very grand ideas which, if successful, would have pretty awesome results. However, I struggle to actually bring these projects through to reality. Many good ideas don't even make it out of my head, and then fizzle away to nothing.
- I have learned about a lot of powerful techniques and tools, such as meditation, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, permaculture(!) - but then struggle to integrate them well into my life. Again, I am often out learning and experimenting with something new before I can make good value with what I already know.
- I find it useful to jump into situations where I have little option but to learn, grow and take action
- I procrastinate. A lot. Just now I stood up to go off and do something else. But I managed to stop myself and exercise some self control! Yay :)
- I have been doing "The Artists Way" for a few months now. A key part of it is writing three A4 pages of whatever comes into your head, first thing every morning. This takes me about 45 minutes. When I was working, this meant getting up at 5.30am to have the time to get it done. I got up at 5.30 every morning to get it done - without fail. There is some strong commitment here that might be able to be modeled and replicated on other areas of my life.
- When I worked in the call center, there was a graphic display of what we had to do each day. It included time on the phones, breaks, lunch, team briefs, holiday etc. This might be a useful model to replicate.
What do I do a lot of?
- Browsing the internet - websites, social media, etc. This feels important to stay "clued up" on the goings on in the green world, trends etc for my website. Engaging creatively and effectively with these platforms is an important element for developing my brand and website traffic. Most of my time is spent on the computer.
- Watching documentaries - I find these useful to develop my knowledge and understanding of the world, in an easily digestible format. Sometimes I feel like I should be doing something "more useful" than watching documentaries. I then usually browse the internet for a while longer.
- Morning Pages - 3 sides of A4, takes 45 mins every morning.
What I feel I must do more of:
- Working on my diploma portfolio
- Updating my blog website
- Building networks with influential people
- Exercise, meditation and yoga
- Helping Mum around the house
- Observing and interacting with the Garden
- Making changes in my local community
How do I feel - working vs procrastinating
- When I am procrastinating: I feel a sense of dread and anxiety. I often think "yeah I will do something soon" or "oh I should really be doing something more useful right now!" Often, though, I'm not entirely sure what I could do that would be more useful; just that there is stuff that I should be doing. I think that I have set myself some quite high personal standards and goals, and based on previous experiences of "underachieving" due to not doing enough "work" I feel that I am not moving fast enough towards my desired outcomes.
- When I am working: I kind of feel some anxiety, and also a strong urge to do something else. I write my diploma work directly onto weebly, which is browser based. So up at the top of google chrome I have lots of other tabs tempting me to watch a video, read an article, or check social media!
Boundaries
I am thinking of developing some kind of rigid structure for me to obey, in the hopes that it will increase my productivity whilst allowing my recreational time to be guilt free (not feeling I am procrastinating!).
Any structured program that I develop must also include for spontaneity! Somehow.
Time is going to become scarce again, now that I have this bushcraft job coming up. Sometimes it will be abundant, others it will be very limited. My structures must apply equally to both.
Replicability - if I develop a good system then it could be useful to other people too.
Needs - I must build in adequate time for meeting my needs such as sleep, food, etc.
Any structured program that I develop must also include for spontaneity! Somehow.
Time is going to become scarce again, now that I have this bushcraft job coming up. Sometimes it will be abundant, others it will be very limited. My structures must apply equally to both.
Replicability - if I develop a good system then it could be useful to other people too.
Needs - I must build in adequate time for meeting my needs such as sleep, food, etc.
Resources
Personal growth is a strong interest of mine, and I have read many resources on the subject. I will outline the most important/useful ones here.
Personalexcellenceblog.co is a website that I have found very useful. The three most useful ideas that I gleaned were the Time Management Matrix; the Life Handbook; and Becoming the CEO of your Life.
I have been listening to the audiobook of "Getting Things Done", and have been thoroughly impressed. This is a powerful productivity system whereby you get all of your "stuff" out of your head, and onto paper or the computer. The idea is that by moving all of your commitments and time pressures out of your head and into physical format, your mental energy is then freed up to be used productively in the present moment.
I have been listening to the audiobook of "Getting Things Done", and have been thoroughly impressed. This is a powerful productivity system whereby you get all of your "stuff" out of your head, and onto paper or the computer. The idea is that by moving all of your commitments and time pressures out of your head and into physical format, your mental energy is then freed up to be used productively in the present moment.
Personal Excellence Blog
The Time Management Matrix is originally drawn from the book "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", although I am referring here to the Personal Excellence Blog. There are four quadrants:
Highly effective people deal with the four quadrants in the following ways:
The picture to the right illustrates the relative amounts of time to spend on different quadrants. No time is allocated to Q-4.
The next bright idea from Personal Excellence Blog is The Life Handbook. The following quote sums it up quite nicely: " Just as the Bible is the guidebook that reflects the doctrine and creed of Christianity, your life handbook is your map towards living your best possible life." Pretty cool, huh? Where do you put all of your ideas; all of your goals; your driving purpose in life; and your life lessons? In your life handbook, that's where! It is your central blueprint for the life of your dreams. It is a space to focus on Q-2 activities, plans and ideas in an organised and effective manner. It is advised to refer to this document at least once a day, even for just a couple of minutes, to develop clarity towards your ideal life. An in depth look at the Life Handbook, and how to make your own, is available here.
Finally, You Are the CEO of Your Life! I think this is an interesting way of viewing your effectiveness in life. How is your company (life) performing? Are you achieving bigger and better results than last year? How are your different departments doing, such as health, finance, relationships and spirituality? Do you need to invest more in some of these departments? What processes and routines exist to maximise the effectiveness of your company? These are just a few of the ways that you might use to assess your life in this way.
- Quadrant of Necessity - Tasks in this quadrant are both urgent and important. Get them done! People who operate largely in this quadrant can experience high levels of stress and burnout - they only handle tasks when they are urgent, and the pile seems to grow bigger and bigger! Some of my Q-1 tasks at the moment include: completing diploma projects on time; paying bills; watering seedlings (I struggled to think of these - I guess I've got things pretty easy at the moment!)
- Quadrant of Quality and Personal Leadership - A bit of a lame title in my mind! This is the most important area to focus your attention. Whilst Q-1 is focused on fighting urgent problems, Q-2 is focusing on activities that are important, but not urgent - avoiding problems before they arise, and working towards long term visions and goals. I might rename it the Quadrant of Long Term Achievement and Success! Q-2 activities often go ignored. They rarely jump up in your face and shout "HEY THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE NOW!"; they easily fall behind more urgent issues; and results often only come to fruition after an extended period of time. My Q-2 areas of work include: working on the diploma to become a qualified Permaculture teacher; seeking opportunities to develop skills and experience; developing my blog; and networking with like-minded and influential people. I am happy to see that I am already conducting a lot of work in this high leverage quadrant!
- Quadrant of Deception - Urgent, but not important. This one is very easy to confused with Q-1. Somebody comes to you and says "THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE BY TOMORROW!" Does it? It might be urgent, but is it important? If it is not important, then it fits into the Quadrant of Deception. Examples include: phone calls; email; and working towards other peoples goals. Getting stuck in Q-3 results in doing a lot of work for very little result. Decide, is it even worth doing? If it is, can it be delegated?
- Quadrant of Waste - Not urgent, not important. Time wasters! They are oh so easy to fall into, and can result in a whole day passing by almost unconsciously! Q-4 activities add little to no value to our lives - they are unfulfilling and a waste of resources.
Highly effective people deal with the four quadrants in the following ways:
- Quadrant of Necessity - Manage these tasks and get them out of the way swiftly. Get out of the way before they pile up or blow out of proportion.
- Quadrant of Long Term Achievement and Success - Focus time and effort on this area, as they contribute disproportionately to long term goals and personal growth. These are the seeds of your future!
- Quadrant of Deception - Eliminate, Delegate or Outsource as these tasks aren't really worth your time.
- Quadrant of Waste - Dump. Plain and simple.
The picture to the right illustrates the relative amounts of time to spend on different quadrants. No time is allocated to Q-4.
The next bright idea from Personal Excellence Blog is The Life Handbook. The following quote sums it up quite nicely: " Just as the Bible is the guidebook that reflects the doctrine and creed of Christianity, your life handbook is your map towards living your best possible life." Pretty cool, huh? Where do you put all of your ideas; all of your goals; your driving purpose in life; and your life lessons? In your life handbook, that's where! It is your central blueprint for the life of your dreams. It is a space to focus on Q-2 activities, plans and ideas in an organised and effective manner. It is advised to refer to this document at least once a day, even for just a couple of minutes, to develop clarity towards your ideal life. An in depth look at the Life Handbook, and how to make your own, is available here.
Finally, You Are the CEO of Your Life! I think this is an interesting way of viewing your effectiveness in life. How is your company (life) performing? Are you achieving bigger and better results than last year? How are your different departments doing, such as health, finance, relationships and spirituality? Do you need to invest more in some of these departments? What processes and routines exist to maximise the effectiveness of your company? These are just a few of the ways that you might use to assess your life in this way.
Getting Things Done
This book is such a fantastic resource. If you ever feel overwhelmed by the tasks that you have do to, from changing career to buying milk, then this book will be a godsend. If you struggle with procrastination and always try to push tasks to the back of your mind, you are probably aware of the way this seems to clog up your mind and block your productivity, GTD will help to clear that up. Finally, if you are like me and constantly coming up with ideas and projects and things to do, then this will give you a system to turn the best ideas into reality.
Getting things done essentially consists of collecting all projects, goals, or vague things that need to get done into one giant "Inbox". You then process these to establish the next action for each project. Finally, you have a nice neat pile of actions to complete. Then it is just a simple task of completing the actions.
I would highly advise the book to anyone. Read reviews and buy it here.
Getting things done essentially consists of collecting all projects, goals, or vague things that need to get done into one giant "Inbox". You then process these to establish the next action for each project. Finally, you have a nice neat pile of actions to complete. Then it is just a simple task of completing the actions.
I would highly advise the book to anyone. Read reviews and buy it here.
The Artists Way
Another powerful book is The Artists Way. It uses a series of exercises to unblock your inner creativity. You write 3 sides of A4 first thing each morning, to just dump out whatever comes into your mind! On it's own, I found this really useful. I was able to clear out negativity, whilst exploring possibilities for projects and ideas. Once a week, you take yourself on an "Artist's Date" which is spending at least one hour somewhere that feeds your creativity, such as a museum, a walk in the woods, or what have you. Finally, there is a chapter to read each week for a total of 12 weeks. At the end of each chapter are some exercises and tasks to complete. I found this book fun and really saw the results coming through.
Anthony Robbins
Wow, what a guy! This dude is inspirational, and has worked in seminars with literally millions of people. He's written a few books, and made a bunch of audio programs (which cost a load of money). I managed to obtain some of his audio programs, which involve listening an hour each day for between a week and a month. They are interactive, and involve a lot of goal setting, action planning, limitation busting; even physically exercising and changing your diet! He is the success coach of all success coaches, but unlike many others he doesn't focus purely on wealth and materialism. He also concentrates a lot of developing strong relationships; good health; and cultivating gratitude (which he see's as the foundation of true success).
Hour of Power
This idea is pretty cool. It involves 1 hour every morning doing exercise and envisioning the days success. The length of time can be varied - half hour of happiness or fifteen minutes of fortune! Start as you mean to go on - leaping out of bed into an hour of success first thing in the morning gets you primed and ready for success throughout the day!
Visualisation
Lots and lots and lots of "success" resources come back to the idea of visualising the successful completion of your goals. How will it look? How will it feel? What will you say to yourself in your mind? What will others say? It works on the basis that your subconscious mind cannot distinguish between fantasy and reality (such as when you are dreaming) and so you can prime it for success if you can feed the information in the language of the subconscious (visualisation). Because the subconscious mind is so much more powerful than the conscious mind, you then have a powerful ally to help you achieve your goals. Also, a lot of the time we go through life focusing on what we don't want. I don't want stress. I don't want GMO's. I don't want to live in a city. Etc etc. We get much more powerful results when we focus on what we do want, and this is just an expression of that. Knowing what we do want allows us to coordinate our actions to much greater effect.
Hour of Power
This idea is pretty cool. It involves 1 hour every morning doing exercise and envisioning the days success. The length of time can be varied - half hour of happiness or fifteen minutes of fortune! Start as you mean to go on - leaping out of bed into an hour of success first thing in the morning gets you primed and ready for success throughout the day!
Visualisation
Lots and lots and lots of "success" resources come back to the idea of visualising the successful completion of your goals. How will it look? How will it feel? What will you say to yourself in your mind? What will others say? It works on the basis that your subconscious mind cannot distinguish between fantasy and reality (such as when you are dreaming) and so you can prime it for success if you can feed the information in the language of the subconscious (visualisation). Because the subconscious mind is so much more powerful than the conscious mind, you then have a powerful ally to help you achieve your goals. Also, a lot of the time we go through life focusing on what we don't want. I don't want stress. I don't want GMO's. I don't want to live in a city. Etc etc. We get much more powerful results when we focus on what we do want, and this is just an expression of that. Knowing what we do want allows us to coordinate our actions to much greater effect.
Ken Wilbur
Ken Wilbur has a lot of big ideas. Some of them are transparent, accessible, and of obvious value. Others are opaque, vague, and shrouded in words that he made up to refer to concepts that he developed based on experiences and references that the majority of people do not have. The most useful of his ideas is the idea of Integral Development. It sounds complex, but it is inherently simple. It is another four quadrant grid, but this time we have internal and external versus individual and collective. Internal individual is the personal, subjective realm of opinions, mental states, dreams etc. External individual is the personal, objective realm such as the physiology, diet, exercise etc. External collective refers to systems and structures of society such as networks, politics, economics, and communities. Finally, internal collective are the collective ideas, narratives and culture. Their usefulness lies in the assertion that most people focus on one or two of these, at the expense of the others. For example, someone may focus on meditation - cultivating their internal individual realm - but then ignore their physical health; culture and social structure. The integral model thus proposes that holistic, balanced growth arises when we focus on developing each of these areas.
Assess
I made a mind map of all the interconnections between my observations and goals, but it turned out crazy and I can't work out how to give it more order so that it might make sense to someone looking at it! But from it, I have established that some of my goals and observations have a lot more interconnections than others. The successful life design will allow:
I have outlined a number of different resources that I have found useful over the last few months. However, I have come across so many different systems and strategies that I have been bouncing around between them and not been able to apply any to their full potential. For example, should I do the hour of power, or morning pages? When I worked at the call center, I already had to get up at 5.30am to get my morning pages in before work. Getting up at 4.30 just wouldn't have been feasible! I want to look at integrating these different strategies to create one super system to facilitate my most awesome life, and maximise my benefit to the world.
The importance of effective time management is growing, since I am due to start two new jobs in the coming weeks! One of them involves teaching bushcraft to school kids in residential centers across the UK, so I could potentially be living in the woods for up to two weeks at a time. All this, while increasing pace and performance on my diploma; growing an abundance of fruit and vegetables; writing for, and promoting my blog; developing a social media presence and brand; and saving the world from imminent catastrophe(!!!)! Whew, it's gonna be one hell of a ride! I might try and build some down time in there too :p
The jobs I am starting will certainly allow my positive effect on the world to grow, and are situations where I will have little choice but to grow and take action. Living in the woods, developing a high competency in bushcraft and sharing it in fun, engaging ways with school kids will certainly be exciting and rich with experience. Both jobs will contribute significantly to my personal and professional development - taking on skills, proficiencies and contacts that will serve my long term goal of developing a center of intensive sustainability and self reliance.
The "Getting things done" system could be very valuable when I am both time rich and time constrained. Essentially, you build up a pile of things to do, and then get them done one at a time. So whether I have a whole week free, or 10 minutes before bed - I will be able to pick something up from the pile and get it done. With my new job, I can be travelling by train for around 3 hours at a time. This would be useful time to get things done. My successful system would have some kind of portability element to it - so that I can work "on the go".
Some questions now arise. How can I gain maximum effect for minimum effort (80:20 rule)? For example, I could wake up each morning and write my 3 A4 sheets, then crank out my hour of power, but what if I could combine the two in some way? How can I integrate the various ideas for time management and growth: bringing together the time management matrix and getting things done, whilst focusing my long term development work in a balanced way between the integral quadrants? The principle of "Integrate; don't segregate" could have powerful applications here.
- My positive effect on the world to grow (9 links)
- The ability to "jump into" situations where I have little choice but to grow and take action (8 links)
- Life to be fun, exciting and rich with experience (7 links)
- My "big ideas" to move out of my head and into reality (7 links)
- Creation of opportunities to grow personally, professionally and spiritually (6 links)
- Integration of the wide range of tools and strategies that I have learned about (4 links)
I have outlined a number of different resources that I have found useful over the last few months. However, I have come across so many different systems and strategies that I have been bouncing around between them and not been able to apply any to their full potential. For example, should I do the hour of power, or morning pages? When I worked at the call center, I already had to get up at 5.30am to get my morning pages in before work. Getting up at 4.30 just wouldn't have been feasible! I want to look at integrating these different strategies to create one super system to facilitate my most awesome life, and maximise my benefit to the world.
The importance of effective time management is growing, since I am due to start two new jobs in the coming weeks! One of them involves teaching bushcraft to school kids in residential centers across the UK, so I could potentially be living in the woods for up to two weeks at a time. All this, while increasing pace and performance on my diploma; growing an abundance of fruit and vegetables; writing for, and promoting my blog; developing a social media presence and brand; and saving the world from imminent catastrophe(!!!)! Whew, it's gonna be one hell of a ride! I might try and build some down time in there too :p
The jobs I am starting will certainly allow my positive effect on the world to grow, and are situations where I will have little choice but to grow and take action. Living in the woods, developing a high competency in bushcraft and sharing it in fun, engaging ways with school kids will certainly be exciting and rich with experience. Both jobs will contribute significantly to my personal and professional development - taking on skills, proficiencies and contacts that will serve my long term goal of developing a center of intensive sustainability and self reliance.
The "Getting things done" system could be very valuable when I am both time rich and time constrained. Essentially, you build up a pile of things to do, and then get them done one at a time. So whether I have a whole week free, or 10 minutes before bed - I will be able to pick something up from the pile and get it done. With my new job, I can be travelling by train for around 3 hours at a time. This would be useful time to get things done. My successful system would have some kind of portability element to it - so that I can work "on the go".
Some questions now arise. How can I gain maximum effect for minimum effort (80:20 rule)? For example, I could wake up each morning and write my 3 A4 sheets, then crank out my hour of power, but what if I could combine the two in some way? How can I integrate the various ideas for time management and growth: bringing together the time management matrix and getting things done, whilst focusing my long term development work in a balanced way between the integral quadrants? The principle of "Integrate; don't segregate" could have powerful applications here.
Apply Permaculture Principles
Observe and Interact - I have been observing my patterns and processes. The design will include time to observe and interact. Those observations will be many:
- Time to observe trends and current events relevant to my goals and objectives - such as reading articles and watching documentaries.
- Observing my own processes and growth.
- Observing nature.
- Observing stillness through meditation.
- Interacting with others on social networks to build interconnections and expand possibilities.
- Interacting with new situations as opportunities for growth.
Catch and store energy - Using the GTD system will allow me to catch and store mental energy. Rather than running through the same thoughts, planning, ideas and loops - I will simply get them all out onto paper/computer (whichever I choose to run with). This will help to avoid the "ideas loss" that I suffer, whilst also bringing through more projects into reality!
Integrate, don't segregate - As mentioned in the analysis, to try and do all of the different systems and strategies separately would be time consuming and inefficient. Not only that, but there are definite benefits available when combining the different systems. Now that I think of it, why not integrate GTD with the Life Handbook? Both require regular review, input and use to be effective. And since I will be focusing a disproportionate amount of time on long term achievement and success projects - then there will be a lot of overlap in terms of content. Sounds like a plan!
I also think it would be useful to integrate the morning pages and hour of power. Morning pages take about 45 mins to complete. The content of my morning pages is already, largely, highly motivational and inspirational. Polishing off the hour with 15 minutes of exercise and visualization could be really powerful!
Obtain a yield - Ideas as ideas, thoughts in my mind, have some inherent value. I enjoy dreaming and exploring possibilities. However, their true yield comes when they are transformed into action and transmuted into success! This will be my greatest yield - theoretically unlimited - limited only by my imagination and information. (Mollision principle of unlimited yield)
Use edge and value the marginal - I think that the nature of Morning Pages inherently pushes us to the "edges" of our psyche. It empties your mind and becomes a stream of consciousness. It is at this edge of consciousness that I have found a lot of valuable ideas and insights. Marginal ideas, opinions and states of mind are given equal value to the more "normal" ones - nothing is censored in morning pages! Whatever comes to mind goes on the paper. This is quite different to any other writing/speech/thought, just about anything - where we tend to limit our expression based on certain rules of what is acceptable or valuable.
I'm also pushing myself into marginal situations, beyond the edge of my comfort zone and experience. This will result in maximum growth and development!
Use and value renewable resources and services - IF I do choose to do my GTD system electronically, then I will need access via my smart phone when I'm not at home. If I'm out in the woods for a week or two - I'm going to have some serious battery issues! I'm pretty sure there aren't any plug sockets in the woods... So a small, portable solar panel might be a valuable investment so that I will have access to my GTD and Life Handbook wherever I am (assuming phone signal!)
Design from patterns to details - There will be a spiral pattern of growth on the Wilbur Integral quadrant chart. What this means is that each quadrant should see fairly equal growth over time, creating a spiral pattern. The details of the exact activities to lead to that growth will become apparent over time.
Produce no waste - At first glance, this principle might favour an electronic based system over a paper based one, as there would be no immediate waste produced. However, looking a bit deeper, we might come to some different conclusions. The computer runs on electricity, and probably marks one of my greatest uses of energy. Much of this energy is currently generated using non renewable fossil fuels, and emits various pollutants. Waste is an underutilised resource - and the emissions of CO2 and other gases is not used and is thus a waste (Note: I will be researching and documenting alternative energy providers at a later date). If I used a paper based system, on the other hand, then the resulting scrap paper could be utilised in a number of ways. For example, there are devices that can convert scrap paper into long burning fuel briquettes, which could be used on the chimenea or possibly bbq. Later down the line they might be used in a clay oven.
Apply self regulation and accept feedback - I will be monitoring my progress and changes in productivity, work/life balance, and feelings of wellbeing. I can use positive feedback loops to build upon successes. For example, a positive outcome on a project will give me momentum and confidence to drive forward other projects. Already, after using some of these methods on a casual basis, I have seen increases in my creativity and productivity - which inspires me to implement them further.
Use small and slow solutions - One of the beauties that I see with the GTD system is that you break each complex project down into a simple "next step". So, for example, if the project was "Become a great Permaculture Teacher" then I would look at a next possible action, such as "Buy the Permaculture Teacher's Guide from the Permaculture Association." This helps to break down large complex projects, which could span years, into simple actions that can be completed on the spot, or whenever circumstances permit. Overwhelm at the sheer scale of a project (such as "create a permaculture education center") is reduced to simple, mentally coherent tasks.
Use and value diversity - Using a range of techniques and strategies will give me a richer framework for personal and professional growth - compared to using just one. I will be pursuing a variety of diverse projects and experiences to develop myself in a holistic, balanced, and resourceful manner.
Creatively use and respond to change - The Time Management Matrix will allow me to respond to changes in urgency and importance. For example, something that was originally important but not urgent might suddenly become important due to a change in circumstances. It would need to be completed ASAP to avoid disaster. Or a Q-1 task, previously important and urgent, such as "finding a job" would become unimportant and not urgent when I found a job. On the other hand, if I decided to go travelling instead, finding a job might become a Q-2 task where it is important but not urgent - so that I have some employment to return to when my travels end.
The GTD system does not promote rigid project planning. Instead, each "next action" is planned after completion of the last action, thus allowing fluidity and ad
Design
Based on all of the factors discussed above, I have decided that the design will consist of flow diagrams - structures for me to follow. I have created a flow detailing my adapted Getting Things Done system, which I have dubbed "Permaculture Things Done". This will help improve my productivity and turn more ideas into action - and more importantly - results!
I have also created a "Daily Flow". I think that this will have a lot of value in integrating multiple practices and maximising my growth. It lists things to do each day, such as waking up and leaping out of bed with enthusiasm, doing exercise, reading, and practicing identification. It also has space for completing other projects, such as completing necessary tasks and working on long term achievement and success. Setting designated time slots for potential time wasters such as social media means that I can still spend some time browsing these, but this is limited to maximise productivity in other areas. If, as I so often tell myself, social media is an important element of developing my brand identity and reach - then I can still make use of it through the Permaculture Things Done channels. This forces me to think harder about my use of social media; take directed action as opposed to general browsing; and gaining more results for less input.
These flows will be kept to rigidly while I am at home - making use of structure to enhance my productivity. When I am away, things will differ. In the woods, for example, it is unlikely that I can implement the Day Flow. However, as time goes on and I have some observations from being out there, I will develop a Woodland Day Flow to include things such as exercise, meditation, and nature observation. At the moment, I just don't have the necessary information about boundaries and opportunities to be able to develop this.
I have also created a "Daily Flow". I think that this will have a lot of value in integrating multiple practices and maximising my growth. It lists things to do each day, such as waking up and leaping out of bed with enthusiasm, doing exercise, reading, and practicing identification. It also has space for completing other projects, such as completing necessary tasks and working on long term achievement and success. Setting designated time slots for potential time wasters such as social media means that I can still spend some time browsing these, but this is limited to maximise productivity in other areas. If, as I so often tell myself, social media is an important element of developing my brand identity and reach - then I can still make use of it through the Permaculture Things Done channels. This forces me to think harder about my use of social media; take directed action as opposed to general browsing; and gaining more results for less input.
These flows will be kept to rigidly while I am at home - making use of structure to enhance my productivity. When I am away, things will differ. In the woods, for example, it is unlikely that I can implement the Day Flow. However, as time goes on and I have some observations from being out there, I will develop a Woodland Day Flow to include things such as exercise, meditation, and nature observation. At the moment, I just don't have the necessary information about boundaries and opportunities to be able to develop this.
By designing these flows, I reduce the amount of mental effort required in maximising productivity. I will print out both flows and have them next to my desk for reference. I can develop fairly complex routines now and not have to remember what to do and when. This should help to maximise yield on the variety of useful strategies that I have come across, and allow me to better integrate them into my life. Tomorrow, I will implement the flows, and review their usefulness. I expect to make many tweaks as time goes on. These flows are not set in stone, and will consciously evolve over time.
Implementation
So, yesterday I started using my new flows. Yesterday I got loads done! I did work on previous diploma projects that I had been avoiding for a long time. I got a letter sent off to the tax office to reclaim overpaid taxes. I registered as self employed for income I make online. I categorised different projects into the four quadrants of the Time Management Matrix - avoiding unnecessary effort on pointless tasks. I consciously stopped myself when I realised that I was going on tangents so that I could keep on track. I spent less time wasting on general internet browsing. I reviewed my life handbook, adding in new bits and removing others - and felt a great sense of satisfaction when I realised how much I am achieving since I last reviewed it a couple of months ago! I had a couple of new ideas which I wrote down as projects and categorised as per the PTD flow. On these, I also wrote quick notes on "who, what, why, where, when, how" - which came out of the blue but felt like it would be useful in progressing the projects. The ideas included "Establish a Transition Town movement in my local area" for which the next action was to "reserve the transition town companion book from the local library." I am feeling a renewed sense of vigour and enthusiasm. At times recently I have felt quite overwhelmed, as though I have "bitten off more than I can chew" in terms of my goals and the projects I am pursuing. I think that a large chunk of that may be down to the fact that my mind had a lot to try and keep track of. Now that I am effectively externalising a lot of that effort, I hope to free up more mental energy to actually advance the projects as opposed to just worrying about them!
Project Reflection
- Summarize how and why you organized this Project Output as presented (Reflect on your design, process, method and purpose):
The designs were created in VUE. This saves me from waffling around with words so that I can get down to the nitty gritty! I would think that anybody could look at these process flows and understand them within about one minute and be able to apply them to their own lives. Simple, clear, and visual. After a month or two they should become ingrained in me and be pretty automatic.
I included the section "Apply Permaculture Principles" between the design steps of Assess and Design. Predominantly, this forces me to make sure that I am actually applying permaculture principles to my projects and not just writing a load of waffle and pretending that it is permaculture design! Also, for anybody reading or assessing my Diploma, it demonstrates plain and simple that I am applying permaculture. I felt that this was important, and I think I will repeat this in future projects. I see some Diploma portfolios and think "Nice design, but where is the permaculture?!" Hopefully I have now made it obvious in mine.
- How did this process go?
- What did you learn?
I learnt about effective time management strategies. I also learnt that effective designs don't always have to be as grandiose as you first imagine, and that sometimes a simple tweak can have great results. This might have valuable applications in future projects and designs, where I can focus on the clients most pressing need or greatest biggest problem, and then deliver simple but effective strategies to meet that need and overcome the problem.
- What tools did you use (An explanation of the technical side of creating this project report. What software did you use? What digital literacy was required to put this together)?
I used VUE, as I have done in previous projects. I have used the camera on my phone to document my PTD papers. I haven't really pushed any boundaries on this front though.
- Did you find any people or tutorials particularly useful in creating this project report?
- How much time did you spend in creating this project report?
- How well have did you showcase your learnings in this project report? Would you consider this project report satisfactory if it was prepared by another person?
- Any final reflections on your pathway integration and development?
I felt that this project was a very important step on my pathway. I think that so far, I have been underperforming in terms of time given to the Diploma and I feel like I have been falling behind schedule. Now that I have my procedures, I should be able to get much more done and feel much more on top of things and in control. Already, in just the few days of applying my flows, I have got lots done and I'm feeling good. Full steam ahead with the rest of the diploma! Nearly halfway through now!
