It’s not about the numbers, I know, but I often feel like I want to do everything and be everything, swallowing the universe down whole so I can really truly live it.
Um, that doesn’t work.
I’m all for living fully, sure, but doing lots and lots of stuff doesn’t necessarily make for a full life. A busy one, yes. A fulfilled one? Depends.
At any rate, I’ve gotten into the habit of putting way too much on my plate — reading fifteen to twenty books at a time (no, not at the same exact moment, though I can’t say I haven’t been tempted ;)), working on ten or so writing projects at a time and another ten or so design projects at a time. There’ve been moments of bliss in there, but more often than not it’s been stressful and chaotic and I’ve felt like my mental RAM was always maxing out. (Not to mention that getting an upgrade is a little out of my budget at the moment. ;))
So, a couple days ago I decided to give myself some constraints:
5 books at a time. 2 writing projects at a time. 3 design projects at a time.
It’s already working wonders. Since giving myself this rule, I’ve finished three books (aside: reading twenty at a time means it takes eons longer to finish any one book) and feel like I’ve rejuvenated my reading habit, and with fewer projects in the foreground at any one time, my mind feels a lot clearer. I can wrap my head around it all now.
Which isn’t to say it’s been easy — every day I come across books I want to start reading, but now I tell myself that I can’t pick up a new one until I finish one of the five I’m currently reading. And it’s working. Hallelujah!
Ditto for the two writing projects. I’ve got this novel I want to finish by the end of summer, but I kept getting distracted by other shiny little projects. No longer. One long project (the novel) and one short (a screenplay) is enough to keep me busy but not so much that I’m drowning in to-do list items. And whatever two things I’m working on will get much more attention than they would have otherwise.
Anyway, this is good, making me both more productive and more happy. And in all honesty it’ll probably help the numbers as well — spreading yourself too thin doesn’t really have many benefits, I’m afraid. Now let’s just pray the whole thing sticks and becomes a habit instead of evaporating next week. :)
Throw in your two cents