Update: Stop Hurtling Around, Relax and Think

I receive a lot of newsletters and updates both on my professional and personal email accounts. I don't mind receiving the emails at all but what really ticks me off is the fact that most "newsletters" are sell-sell-sell ones.

Buy this now or you'll regret it! You have 12 hours from now till this ONCE IN A LIFETIME DEAL disappears from the face of the earth! We're insane and we're giving this life-changing course for free. 

Yada-yada-yada-yada-yada....

I hardly click on any one of them and unsubscribe as liberally as I subscribe, especially my personal email account. Even then, I often give people the benefit of the doubt by clicking just to see how many times they're selling me something versus how many times they're trying to add value to my life.

Starting from now, I am going to try to share some stuff that I've found on the internet that I think are worth looking at. Bear in mind, some of them are going to try to sell you something too, but at least (the way I see it) they're more subtle about it.

But my Thursdays and Fridays are essentially free and “unplanned” for the most part. I say “unplanned” because on my calendar I have a timeblock scheduled on Thursday between 12pm and 5pm as “Strategy and Thinking Time”. For Friday I have it set from 1pm to 5pm.

Thinking Time: Managing Your Schedule like a True CEO

I assume everyone knows who Bill Gates is. I am also going out on the limb to assume that you know Warren Buffett too.

This short transcript (with an accompanying interview-video) shows you how these 2 billionaires clear days off their schedule to just sit down and THINK.

We schedule everything from Brad's birthday party to Meeting with Mr. Johnson, but we don't schedule stuff like Thinking or Meditation. It made me wonder why. Why don't we just set it in stone, on our schedule, and just walk over to the nearest quiet cafe for some REAL thinking?

At the risk of sounding like a real dumbass, I am just going to ask, WHY NOT?

Head over here to read the short transcript, watch the video or listen to the podcast from AsianEfficiency.com

Too Busy to be Lazy

This is going to sound weird but my week's been kind of harrowing. The new year kicked in like a madman with an axe chasing me down a dead-end road. I've spent days just rushing in and out of the house like I've lost ALL marbles in my head, trying to meet people AND deadlines, keeping my kids alive, well, AND keeping myself alive.

I bet it sounds a little like your life too, huh?

I am actually the kind of person who really loves sitting in a corner reading a book, watching a drama/Netflix, sipping wine quietly at home with a friend, or spend time playing Connect Four with my kids. Some people call it lazy but I call it necessarily laid-back.

In a world of constant distractions, the author of the following article is right - laziness is a bloody lost art. We don't need to, literally, put our feet up, but at the very least, we should be allowed to put our mental feet up once in a while.

And that's why I've uninstalled Facebook from my phone and I don't regret it. It's been months and we can safely surmise that I am not going to miss it unless I really have the time to chat and connect with my friends.

I am done being both an active user and passive surfer. But when I DO have the time to log in, I’ll be giving my family and friends the attention they deserve. I am done with judging.

And in defense of 'creativity', ideas don't come to people who are too busy. We need to rest, plan, and unearth ideas. Hey, don't take it up with me. Ask Chris Bailey who wrote this article, Why Being Lazy is Actually Good for You, for Time.com

Image Source: Anthony Ginsbrook on Unsplash

Relax Your Joints with this Short 10-Minute Yoga Routine

And if you are sitting around in front of the computer the whole day (like mua), you might also be suffering from lots of pain/creaks in joints you didn't know existed. 10 minutes is all you need for this simple routine.

Find somewhere quiet to do this. I did and man, the bottom half of my body came alive again and if I added a few more moves for the upper body, this might work out to be quite a good 15- to 20-minute joint-loosening routine.

Don't worry, it's pretty simple, nothing fancy. And if you're alone in the room or with someone who sucks just as bad as you, who cares your Warrior, Tree or Downward Dog poses aren't up to par.

What was it that they say again? Carpe diem?

Lots of love coming your way!
XOXO,
Marsha