A Community Contribution from Jon, who posted this on his blog. We thought other GTD enthusiasts would resonate with this and Jon’s advice of, “You don’t have to be perfect.”
I refuse to use the word “busy” because in this day and age we are all in the same boat. This year has been an enlightening one for me so far. Truthfully, I decided a couple months ago to take a step back from the constant search to improve. I found myself constantly reading books on getting better at work and life. Also, consistently reading GTD material and listening to podcasts, etc. While this worked for a long time and I tangibly saw the benefits of my learning, I found that it became a vicious pursuit of perfection. The pursuit of perfection is what most of us are after. It’s a noble pursuit. However, it can be an addicting one as well. You can really equate it to a drug addict or alcoholic in some ways. I found myself constantly reading. Finishing one book and picking up the next. Constantly thinking about how to achieve this or to achieve that. At the end of the day, this pursuit of perfection is all about a future state. I found it very difficult to When you take a day off of work, don’t check your BlackBerry. When you’re on vacation, disconnect as much as possible. When you go to your kid’s soccer game, don’t even bring your phone with you — leave it in the car. When you’ve been working your butt off at the gym all week, take a day off and eat whatever you want. It will make it that much easier to get after it the following week. If you’re married and have kids, step back and don’t feel guilty about going away for a weekend with your husband or wife. It will make you a better parent and partner.
The same goes for GTD. Back off a bit. You don’t have to be perfect. Your systems are going to get out of whack. You’re email’s going to be out of control at times. Your office inbox is going to overflow. The key is to trust what you’ve learned. Trust that you can back off and apply your knowledge to getting yourself back on your game. It’s in this trust that the potential stresses of the craziness subside.
Be well and, again, thanks for sticking with me during this hiatus.
“Happiness is not in the pursuit, for it is in the silent corridors of this thing we call life.” – Unknown
Great post.
Can you give us the URL to Jon’s blog?
Jon’s blog: http://www.myfourteenforty.com/
FANTASTIC. thanks 4 the post, and thanks Jon for the writing and insights.
This post really spoke to me. This past half year I spent learning and applying in my new career. I really pursued the chase with so much fervor, that I suddenly had days in between where I was completely exhausted. In either case I really couldn’t enjoy my career or personal life, although I really love both. I had this week to completely regroup and now plan on approaching everything on a more even keel.
PS I’m an avid GTDer.
A very useful piece of clarity during some very turbulent times. Thanks Jon
Right: you’ve got to step back sometimes and think about what’s effective (versus efficient). Nice post!
I worked hard last Friday and then took the entire weekend off – It was so rejuvenating that I couldn’t wait to get back to work on Monday. My mind needed a rest b/c I had been spending weeks and weeks constantly reading and learning.
I say strive for progress – not perfection
Great comments everyone. Thanks for the kind words on the post. This is such an important topic, in my opinion. Both from a GTD perspective and a life perspective. All the best to you!
The desire for perfection is the worst disease that ever afflicted the human mind.
Marquis Louis Fontanes (1757-1821) to Napoleon 1 in 1804.
Great post, Jon. A few months back I had an insight that enabled me to stop seeking on command. You may want to try this. I realized I was walking around with the nagging belief, “I don’t know enough yet.” I was then able to see that I actually did know enough to do a good job right now, because I was doing a pretty good job in my practice already. Perfect job? No. But good enough for now. When I am mindful of my trying to get better for too long online, I ask, “do I know enough right now to do a good job?” The answer is almost always, “yes.”
Nice one! The pursuit of more learning is so tempting it’s hard to pull back an not feel like you are stopping short of the end goal. It’s ironic that the more we try to cram into our lives the less time we have to assimilate and enjoy what we get.