I know - Christmas is over and no I'm not talking about Mrs. Claus, I'm talking about myself. I am a list maker. Everything from a run-down of what I need to do in one day, to bullets of what need to be accomplished over the next few months, thank you notes that need to be written, phone calls that need to be made. Come to think of it, groceries are probably the one thing I don't write a list for (though they say its a smart way to keep yourself healthy and focused in a market - oops). Lists keep me on track and on top of what needs to get done. Nothing is more satisfying to me than making a nice big check over "order fabric for D21" or "pick up dry-cleaning." Sometimes its not even about needing a reminder - sometimes I'm just more likely to get something done if I can draw a thick black line through the words "Ship samples back to CA" than if its just a mental note. So it struck a chord with me when in the life coach in February's O Magazine (I know, I apologize for being a nerd) wrote about making lists for life goals, short and long term. She explained that she has seen time and time again, that when someone makes a conscious active record of what they want from this planet that it can miraculously come true. Part of it she says, is weeding out the superficial (or as she calls the shallows - material things) to get to the core of what you want. As if by saying out loud "I want a BMW" you will realize that this want is frivolous. She argues the same thing goes for significant others. That while the infamous craigslist posting is never going to get her "millionaire investment banker from Tribeca" because she is, Martha Beck says, constantly grasping on things she desires and operating as isolated and separate, that those of us who actualize our own happiness and then build on real valuable things we want from there, we can get them. Because once we have found our own inner peace, we know its not dollar signs that are going to compliment us. Perhaps list making is the best way to sort these desires out. When I first started reading, despite my love of list writing, I was skeptical. Lists of what to achieve or want from another person has always seemed somehow arrogant or egotistical to me. But this article made sense to me. Why shouldn't we focus as directly on what we want out of another person or our careers, as we do on what vegetables we need from the produce department on Tuesday? Cause if we don't know what or who we want who is going to know for us? I think its time for me to write another list - maybe not quick as quickly checkable or chuckable as the ones I usually write. Its January - no better time.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
She's Making a List...
I know - Christmas is over and no I'm not talking about Mrs. Claus, I'm talking about myself. I am a list maker. Everything from a run-down of what I need to do in one day, to bullets of what need to be accomplished over the next few months, thank you notes that need to be written, phone calls that need to be made. Come to think of it, groceries are probably the one thing I don't write a list for (though they say its a smart way to keep yourself healthy and focused in a market - oops). Lists keep me on track and on top of what needs to get done. Nothing is more satisfying to me than making a nice big check over "order fabric for D21" or "pick up dry-cleaning." Sometimes its not even about needing a reminder - sometimes I'm just more likely to get something done if I can draw a thick black line through the words "Ship samples back to CA" than if its just a mental note. So it struck a chord with me when in the life coach in February's O Magazine (I know, I apologize for being a nerd) wrote about making lists for life goals, short and long term. She explained that she has seen time and time again, that when someone makes a conscious active record of what they want from this planet that it can miraculously come true. Part of it she says, is weeding out the superficial (or as she calls the shallows - material things) to get to the core of what you want. As if by saying out loud "I want a BMW" you will realize that this want is frivolous. She argues the same thing goes for significant others. That while the infamous craigslist posting is never going to get her "millionaire investment banker from Tribeca" because she is, Martha Beck says, constantly grasping on things she desires and operating as isolated and separate, that those of us who actualize our own happiness and then build on real valuable things we want from there, we can get them. Because once we have found our own inner peace, we know its not dollar signs that are going to compliment us. Perhaps list making is the best way to sort these desires out. When I first started reading, despite my love of list writing, I was skeptical. Lists of what to achieve or want from another person has always seemed somehow arrogant or egotistical to me. But this article made sense to me. Why shouldn't we focus as directly on what we want out of another person or our careers, as we do on what vegetables we need from the produce department on Tuesday? Cause if we don't know what or who we want who is going to know for us? I think its time for me to write another list - maybe not quick as quickly checkable or chuckable as the ones I usually write. Its January - no better time.
