The Daily Saint

New Definitions of Work-Life Balance?

Photo by Gilest

I love the concept of work-life balance.  Putting it into practice, now that's where things get difficult. 

Difficult, but not impossible.  Julie Mortgenstern, who writes alongside David Allen at Business Week offers this as fresh insight:

"Work-life balance is not about the amount of time you spend working vs. not-working. It’s more about how you spend your time working and relaxing, recognizing that what you do in one fuels your energy for the other."

What she's really saying is what Pope Paul VI called for in the late 1960's.  He coined the phrase, "unity of life" and he meant to encourage folks to see their work and personal values as integrated one with the other. 

One of the tragedies of the entire Bill Clinton scandal was not so much what he did (although hardly commendable).  Rather, it was the paradigm that he promoted: private life and public life as separate entities.  I have heard many of my students over the years buy into this gospel- i.e. "what I do in my own time is my business and not yours!"  Both true and false.

So, what is work-life balance?  Simply put, work-life balance is the art of maintaining the integrity of both your labor and your love.  Someone once said that a job is what you're paid for and a vocation is what you're made for.  Now that's work-life balance.

A Year ago on The Daily Saint: Free Download

Devoted readers of TDS will remember that I used to provide weekly downloads.  Since it's Friday, I dug into the vault and retrieved this post from a year ago.  (ok, not exactly a year ago but it works just as well)

Read Surefire Ways to Live Out Your Mission Statement

Quiet Moments that Boost Productivity

This morning I chose to arrive 15 minutes later to work.  Not late just later.  In that same block of time, I sat quietly and read an article that I've been putting off for a while.  A great use of a quarter hour.

Where in your schedule are 15 quiet moments?

I like to think that there is a bit of monk in all of us.  The BBC series, Finding Sanctuary was so popular because of this. When I take students away from the noise and hustle of the world, they too find that quiet moments actually boost their overall well-being when they return to the "real world".

Some suggestions from Finding Sanctuary:

1. Find a quiet place free from distraction
2. Sit with your limbs uncrossed and with a straight back, hands in your lap
3. Simply breathe at regular speed but breathe deeply and relax
4. Close your eyes and think of a beautiful scene from the natural world
5. Take a simple phrase and repeat it continuously in time with your breathing

Five Meditation Phrases from the Christian Tradition:

• Come and illumine my darkness
• Be still and know that I am God
• God be in my head and in my understanding
• Come Holy Spirit and inflame my heart
• Come Lord Jesus

Forget About Strategic Planning

How many people do you know that spend more time planning than doing?  Status reports, benchmarks and meetings can get in the way of old-fashioned doing. 

I'm not really advocating that we abandon effective strategic planning, but sometimes a next-action step is all that is needed.  Case in point- I gave a talk last night to a group of students and their families on the value of Catholic education.  Having given hundreds of talks, I normally prepare a rough outline and then let it happen, relying on instincts and experience.  On this particular night though, I prepared an overly detailed spec of the evening's topic. 

Too detailed.

I was overly concerned with not forgetting an item on my overly detailed outline and therefore delivered an A-minus talk instead of a homerun.  I would imagine that the audience knew nothing of my consternation but I went home and evaluated my preparation and follow through. 

What's a GTD take on strategic planning?  It's not a matter of take-it-or-leave-it.  Rather, it's about integrating next actions with the benchmarks and stages of a good plan.

The Greatest Project...Ever

I know that strategic planning produces  tangible results but I may have discovered something better.  No, it's not a staff retreat nor is it a new coffee machine in the faculty work-room. 

I put up a tree swing in my backyard.

Who would have know that such a simple project would produce such amazing satisfaction?  Had I known, I would have put one up years ago.  Remembering that a project is defined as "anything you'd like to or need to get done which requires multiple steps", I set out to give my family hours of joy. 

Tree?  Check.

Rope? Check.

Ability to tie a knot?  Check the Internet.  Kind of important.

In less than one hour, I had gone to the hardware store, purchased my gear and I was good to go.  The result: my backyard is transformed into a play-zone. 

Application
What project are you working on that is really worth the effort?  Which one will produce results that will completely transform your workplace?  Which project can you get rid of because it is a waste of time?

Today a Quote from Meister Eckhart on Silence

Photo by д§mд

Since I was in college I have been fascinated by monastic life: monks, monasteries and everything in between.  In an age of noise, here is a quote from mystic Meister Eckhart,

In silence man can most readily preserve his integrity.

As you navigate the end of your week, take a few moments to breathe deeply and enjoy the silence that already exists around you.  Close out a project, organize your work space, or bring closure to something that has been bothering you.  Before and afterwards is the beautiful gift of silence. 

Resources for the Road

BNET: Silence is Golden, is Noise Pollution Stifling Your Business's Productivity?

Productive Silence: Noise Distraction Affects Employee Satisfaction

Carefree GTD

Photo by Jovika

Elegant. I've heard David Allen use this word many times in his writings and training events.  Most men don't use this word, much less in the context of a dayplanner or to-do list.  The dictionary defines it as

"Characterized by or exhibiting refined, tasteful beauty of manner, form, or style."

Now think of the last time that you felt that someone was elegantly dressed or appointed.  I think of a fundraiser that I was attending a few weeks  back.  One woman in particular (she happens to be my lovely wife) was clearly a cut above the rest, dressed stylishly and carrying herself with confidence. 

We might also consider this a state of being "ok with yourself", or knowing what you're all about.  In my work, we often refer to this as being mission-based and having a sense of contentment about who we are and where we see ourselves going.  If you work in a competitive niche, this "ok-ness" is essential.  Without it, the soul of your company is lost. 

As I think of the word elegant as David Allen refers to it, I'm mindful of a system that is thorough and captures ideas as they come, then processing them into actionable steps.  I think of a net of sorts that can 'catch' what needs to be retained and drop what's useless. 

With this said, how carefree is GTD?  Allen wrote last week about creating systems that are not beholden to the urgent.   This harkens back to what Covey called an "urgency addiction" and he noted as far back as 1988 that the truly successful people in life are looking beyond the ringing phone and email chime.

As I was driving to work this morning, I wondered how many miles my car has- 88K or 98K?  It runs like a champ and my commute is so short that an old pick-up would get me there in one piece.  As long as I take good care of it, I (and my car) will be ok.  This is of course how GTD works as well- when you know what you're all about and do your work with consistency you can relax and get things done.

How elegant is that?

How Green is Your Workplace?

Photo by Steve Roe

Let's face it- it's in to be green and there are so many ways to participate.  Walking, public transportation, recycling, cleaning products, organic food, recycled products, sustainable goods...the list goes on and on.  I recently found these stylish outdoor pots, made from corn husks. 

The Vatican has even weighed in on greening the planet.

A green home is one thing but a green workplace may be more difficult to find.  Or create.  You see, at home, I only have five people to motivate towards recycling.  At work, forty-five.  More difficult yes, but the impact of forty-five could be tremendous.  Plus, that's nine times the amount of paper that could be reused as something else.  Nine times the amount of electricity...nine times the impact.

What's holding you back from a greener workplace?

Green Workplace Resources

How to Green Your Work (Treehugger)

10 Tips for a More Eco-Friendly Workplace (Suite 101)

Green Up Your Workplace (Big Green Switch)

Firms Taking Green Path in Workplace (Boston Globe)

Going Green in the Workplace (Entrepeneur Magazine)

3 Things I've Learned from the Pope's U.S. Visit

Pope Benedict XVI is quite a guy.   Even for those who are not Catholic, his profile and presence speak volumes.  I've learned the following:

1. Just because you are 81 doesn't mean you can't make the most of your position. See Benedict's grueling itinerary below.
2. Putting a problem on the table is always the best solution.  Benedict met yesterday with victims of sexual abuse.
3. Visits matter.  While Benedict is only in the States for a few days, his speeches and initiatives will take months to digest.

From meeting with thousands of people to President Bush to victims of sexual abuse, Benedict has made the most of his visit to the U.S.  Imagine the average 81 year old following this itinerary:

Date	Time	Description
Apr. 15	4:00  p.m.	Andrews Air Force Base Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Maryland and is greeted by President and Mrs. Bush as well as church officials. During his visit to Washington, D.C., the pope will stay at the Vatican Embassy, on Massachusetts Avenue NW.
Apr. 16	10:30 a.m.	White House Welcoming ceremony and private meeting with President Bush. This is only the second time a pontiff has visited the White House. John Paul II was the first.
Apr. 16	5:30 p.m.	National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Prayer service and meeting with 350 U.S. bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
Apr. 17	9:30 a.m.	Nationals Park The pope offers Mass. This will be the first non-baseball event in the new park.
Apr. 17	5:00 p.m.	Catholic University of America Address to the leaders of more than 200 Catholic colleges and superintendents from the 195 U.S. Catholic dioceses on the importance of Catholic education.
Apr. 17	6:30 p.m.	Pope John Paul II Cultural Center Meeting with Buddhists, Muslims, Hindus, Jews and representatives from other religions.
Apr. 18	9:45 a.m.	Kennedy International Airport Arrives in New York. During his visit, the pope will stay at the East 72nd Street residence of Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the papal nuncio to the United Nations.
Apr. 18	10:45 a.m.	United Nations Gives address to the General Assembly, as did Pope Paul VI in 1965 and Pope John Paul II in 1979 and 1995.
Apr. 18	5:00 p.m.	Park East Synagogue Meets with Jewish clergy.
Apr. 18	6:00 p.m.	Church of St. Joseph Prayer service with leaders from other Christian denominations.
Apr. 19	9:15 a.m.	St. Patrick's Cathedral Mass for priests, deacons and members of religious orders.
Apr. 19	4:30 p.m.	St. Joseph's Seminary Meeting with young Catholics, including 50 with disabilities.
Apr. 20	9:30 a.m.	Lower Manhattan Visit to ground zero.
Apr. 20	2:30 p.m.	Yankee Stadium The pope offers Mass. The 200th anniversary of the Baltimore Archdiocese and the anniversaries of the Dioceses of Boston, New York, Louisville and Philadelphia will be celebrated.
Apr. 20	8:00 p.m.	Kennedy International Airport departure

How Do You Organize Your Inspiration?

Photo by Muffet

Today's post is from a handout from a talk that I gave this past weekend called, "Developing a Keynote Address: How to Organize Your Inspiration".

"Peace is the tranquility of order." St. Augustine

Capturing Your Ideas
Have a notebook handy wherever you are.  This can be as simple as a magnetic pad on your fridge (to recall what you need as your kitchen gets empty) to a 50cent notepad for your coat pocket.  You never know when a great idea will strike and give up on the idea of “remembering it later”. Get ideas out of your head- if you don't they'll come back and you'll wonder why you haven't done anything with them.  As David Allen says, "Your head's for having ideas, not for holding them."  If you think it, ink it.

Keeping Your Ideas
Maintaining lists of anything that you want to reference later is a sign of an active mind.  Here is where you've taken your seemingly random "capture anytime" ideas and put them into a system of lists.  Lists might include:

• Great Saint quotes
• Talks I'd like to give
• Questions I'd like to ask the Pope
• Pilgrimage locations I'd like to visit
• Books I'd like to read
• Next time at Home Depot
• Places to visit in San Diego
• Coffee flavors to avoid
• Blog post ideas
• Blood pressure readings

Activating Your Ideas
When you can take your ideas and put them into motion you are making progress.  This might be an idea that you captured on the back of a knapkin or something more formally on a list. This of course does not happen all at once.  It takes practice to move from idea to action.  How do you do it?  By visiting your lists on a regular basis and sitting with them, you can make tremendous progress in life.  When it comes to giving a talk, getting from list to presentation is an art-form.  Gather your ideas, write down some thoughts, then let your outline percolate for a few days. Revisit it and then put on your next addition.  A great talk will look like a home that has had a competent architect working behind the scenes: it looks and feels right, accomplishing everything that the home owner had in mind.  Others will feel at home with your message- now that’s hospitality.