Building Better Patterns
While I still have a week of "work" in front of me, my thoughts are extending past all the nonsense I have to take care of before leaving, and onto what I will do once I am not obligated to do anything. Obviously, doing nothing is going to work against my desired outcomes, so I have to do something.
What is that though?
The short- to mid-term plan is to rebuild my business so that it is able to support me. In order to do this, I have to effectively grow it about 4x from where it stands today, which is not going to be an easy task, given the current economy and state of society. The conditions aren't conducive to someone like me building a business at this moment.
But, before I go diving into rebuilding, I need to get myself in order first. The last month has been stressful, the last week and a half even more so. I need a bit of a wind-down period, but I don't want to bring myself to a stop, and I want to make what I do value-adding to the longer term goals I have. There are a couple of clear items on my agenda.
- Clean the house
- Top to bottom
- All cupboards
- Unused clothes donated
- Clean the basement
- Block the windows for winter
- Put everything in the right place
- Tidy the Laundry room
- Make sure all the winter equipment is ready
- Prepare dinner each night
- Do the grocery shopping during the day
- Teach Smallsteps to cook a couple dishes
- Make it all healthy
- Business tools
- Clean up tech stack
- Make sure I have programs
- Rebuild website
- Talk to the accountant
Looking at the list, I am guessing that it is going to me a couple weeks, because while some are going to be ongoing activities, nearly all of them require extra preparation in some way, as well as possible involvement of others. Though, I am quite looking forward to being left to my own devices a bit. I have been working in teams for a lot of the last years, and that generally comes with a lot of compromise. Working by myself sounds refreshing - for now.
My plan with these activities is not just to clear my head and prepare myself for what is to come, but also help the family and get things in order for them. We have been so busy over the last years, that little bit by little bit, things have fallen through the cracks at home, and now I have the opportunity and time to take a step back, look around, and investigate what will make our lives easier. The added benefit, is that it will make my life easier once work-life starts again too.
Our place looks pretty clean most of the time, but I want it to be organized better than it is. Things have got out of place, and it needs a bit of a defrag to get it back in order, and then some new rules to keep it there. Life would be easier if the basic rules were in place and followed, so that there was more bandwidth to spend on more important tasks, like spending time together.
At least for some period of time, I am able to do a lot of the tasks that would have earlier been done in the evenings or on the weekends, so that these times can be better spent on family activities, or things like getting to the gym. Perhaps with a little less chores for everyone else, all of us will be a little better off.
Each day, I am going to set myself tasks to do, and use it as an opportunity to build more rhythm into my life. For instance, I am going to write during the day as much as possible, so that I can go to bed earlier at night, without feeling that I haven't done enough. I am not sure if it will work, but I am going to try. Also, I am going to rediscover trading also, because I have barely paid attention to it for the last couple years, and it has cost me. Again, I just don't have the mental bandwidth for everything, so I have to prioritize.
Will it make a difference?
Maybe, maybe not. But, doing the same thing is a pretty surefire way to not make a difference.
If you had your days free, what would you do?
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Posted Using InLeo Alpha
Sounds like you have a really good plan in place. I know I would want to keep busy with something productive if I were in the same position. It sure beats just wasting your day on the couch too. Though sometimes we need those days as well!
I think I am going to schedule in some leisure time.
I told Smallsteps tonight about the situation and at least she is very excited about learning to cook with me :)
That does sound like an exciting way to spend your time. I do hope you get some downtime as well. I know if it were me and it was summer I would be hitting the disc golf courses more frequently than I currently do.
I understand that losing a job can be an overwhelming experience, but it can also be an opportunity to rediscover yourself and find new passions. You now have the gift of free time, something you could use to explore interests and skills you may not have had the opportunity to develop before. Spend time with your wife and daughter, creating precious memories together that will last a lifetime. Take the opportunity to learn something new, whether it's an online course, a workshop, or even a hobby you've always wanted to try but never had the time.
Also, this is a good time to reflect on your goals and what you are really passionate about in life, maybe HIVE. Explore different options and keep an open mind to new possibilities that might arise. The support of your family and friends is essential in this process, so don't hesitate to share your concerns and seek advice. Remember that every change brings with it new opportunities, and with a positive attitude and perseverance, you can get through this transition and find a new direction that fills you with satisfaction, purpose, and needs. What is that one dish you cook that everyone in your family loves?
I don't know if you have read this in the past from me, but I am not passionate about anything. There is very little motivation to even get up in the morning, but day in and day out, I do so. It is hard to explain I guess for someone who hasn't experienced this type of thing, but I essentially go through the motions of life, because I must. My enjoyment doesn't really come into it.
Family and friends don't really understand this either.
Sushi. I like it, not love it, but I can prepare it well enough. I will teach Smallsteps how to make it.
What do you need to be someone like?
Please take minimum 1-2 days of doing things that you want to do FOR YOURSELF/keep putting off because everything and everyone else is more important.
and some of it such as the cleaning and sorting like stuff I still need to do
The rest of your outline sounds like a great plan and like you have everything sussed even if it doesn't always feel that way :)
Good luck with keeping the basic rules, they always fall through here.
I'm pretty sure you've asked your closing question before and my answer has only changed slightly XD and I'm still interpreting "free" as in "don't have to do housewqork/chores/errands" as well as not doing paid work. With the kids being older and doing their own thing more I'd be cramming so much project work and may actually get more than this one block I'm working on done then.
Someone that looks a little more local, and speaks the language. It isn't very good here at the moment.
I will schedule those things into my days, but the first few days I plan to "potter around" like my granddad did in old age :)
Are you enjoying the time to work on projects more?
Ahh. I get half of that.
Pottering around is good :D
I don't actually have time to work on projects more, as while the kids don't need me for everything now I'm still the primary mode of transport while licenses are being worked on (that's a whole other pile of grey hairs). Plus work plus volunteering plus the usual house nonsense.
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STOPit's easy to get caught up in school and all the things that need to be done, but I think it's so important to take a step back and focus on organizing your life first.
If I had my days free, I’d probably work on getting better at photography and spend more time outdoors, but I know I’d need to balance that with taking care of personal stuff too.
Which skills are you looking to improve first with your photography?
Some days ago I talked with my friends who retired at their 40s in last month. They say that it is not true one has much more free time if they don't work. Rather, they say time flies by and they delay things to do.
I heard a good saying about parenting today.
"The days are long, but the years fly by"
I look forward to posts where you prepare delicious and healthy dishes.
That is a good idea - I might make a weekly series of it :)
Oh, and thank you for the tip!
I have this habit too! I find this a good way to organise my life and it's also a good way to keep track of my longer term goals, which could easily be overlooked during our day to day lives.
So much falls through the cracks, that I am going to run my life a bit more like I do my work tasks. I hit my goals there (other than losing my job of course!)
What is your best tip?
Hmm the best tip in my view is to set aside some time each week, to plan what are some of the little steps to accomplish for that week, towards the bigger life goals or bigger projects. For example, I could block out 1 hour on a weekday evening to study the financials of a company that I am interested to maybe invest in or to review my portfolio. Or I could block out 1 hour on a weekend afternoon to plan the itinerary of a holiday. Or just 1 hour to tidy up that room which has been messy for some time. Then try to stick to the plan. It doesn't work 100% of the time because sometimes I get caught up with other stuff, and that's fine, I have learnt not to feel guilty or blame myself for these stuff (life is already hard enough, lol).
While I have not been in this position myself, I watched my wife leave a high profile corporate job. She needed a period just like you are describing where she did various things to mentally prepare for the next chapter in her life.
She also had to figure out what business she will start, you already know what your business will be, but still have to face the challenges of growing it in a challenging environment.
Take time to decompress, put your life and mind in order and when you are ready you will succeed in growing your business.
Do you remember how long your wife took?
I was talking to a colleague today and this happened to him ten years ago and he took seven months off. That is crazy!
She was planning to take six months off, but I think she took less time before she actually started starting a few business and it took her a year to settle on what her primary business will be.
I will sit down on my fav chair and read my fav book!
https://www.juliadonaldson.co.uk/books/picture-books/charlie-cooks-favourite-book/
I think I am definitely going to increase my reading time! (listening)
I don't know if smalstep have that book or not, but if not, it is highly recommended
Wow that's a lot of preparation and details.
I don't mind the busy work of starting a business, but the uncertainty of success is scary and offputting.
I dreamed of Hive being a side gig, back when we were on Steemit, and myself being a full time trader of options.
I bought so many books, went to seminars, tried different trading styles, and just when I had developed my own style and strategies a really good job fell into my lap. So I went back to believing in Jobs.
But now I think a business is the way to go.. something you control, something you build, and something where you depend on yourself, mostly.
But life is tricky, just when you think your healthy and invincible something happens to remind you your mortal.
You wake up one day, flat on your back, peeing into a bottle next to your bed.
Shit you exclaim.
Wondering how you got there.
If your fortunate you claw your way back into the workforce.
Your friends ask you how you are and you tell them: I am still standing.
They smile thinking it's a joke.
But deep down you remember being flat on your back, hoping to stand again.
Life can be a bitch, and then you die.
It's up to you to carve out some happiness.
Good Luck with your plans @tarazkp
I find To-Do lists very helpful, they help me reach my goals whether short or long term faster. As someone that forgets things a lot, I find myself forgetting goals or things I already set my mind to do or achieve. So everyday I also create a list of things I need to do, helps me keep track of where I ought to be in the next 1year or 5years.