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April 26, 2006

The Better You Get

I've been rereading Ready For Anything recently and came across the principle that says:

"The better you get, the better you'd better get." -Chapter 42

The topic of responsibility and how our responsibilities change has been on my mind lately. I was having a conversation with a close friend who is recovering from a serious case of meningitis slowly but surely. She commented on the tremendous difference she's experienced in her level of responsibility since she's regained the strength to walk around and do small household tasks. Instead of being fed, she was whipping up delicious recipes for others.

"To whom much is given, much is expected." -Luke 12:48

A physical therapist will often encourage the patient generously when they take even the most microscopic step toward greater flexibility and movement. These tiny changes add up! And the harder we train and expand from the place we started out, the more life shows up to meet us. This principle seems to apply to physiological, mental, even emotional, increases in skill. What amazes me is how this process works so naturally, organically.

"With great power comes great responsibility." -my favorite comic book hero, Spider-man

One thing I love about GTD is that the better I get at it, the more I'm able to see how the new thoughts springing into my mind are more creative and interesting than ever before. That also makes them more challenging to take hold of and make use of, but that's part of the thrill.

So it's clear that more responsibility "comes," but where does it come from? My immediate instinct says it is ourselves, sensing the constant tiny changes in our readiness to deal with the world and adapting what we allow on our figurative plates, calendars and minds. Another possibility is that the environment around us responds to the freed up energy and decides to offer us opportunities to do more, play harder, stretch and grow. My "upbringing" in psychology tells me it is likely a combination of our inner and outer regulators at work.

I've noticed a lot of discussion about the information overload that's overwhelming so many people, and it's very true that technology seems to be pointing us towards more rather than less of everything. But perhaps this mass of information and these vast resources are really a sign that we are evolving, that we are now more able to respond than humankind ever was before.

So the next time you catch yourself thinking, "I don't have time for that," take pause and consider the possibility that more-than-you-can-handle showing up may just be a sign that you can handle more than ever.

Posted by Lisa at 07:58 PM | Comments (2)

April 19, 2006

Yoga for migraine

I just had my first appointment at the Keeler Center for the Study of Headache where I'll be a patient of Dr. Robert Cowan and am excited to learn more from these top-of-notch researchers about how to manage, and hopefully eliminate, my migraines.

I already enjoyed the benefits of a yoga session specially designed for migraine-sufferers (what a pity-inducing terminology they use for us!). Our instructor, Veronica Lee, did a fantastic job of easing us into a relaxed place, and I had an experience of being more present with my body, instead of my thoughts, than I have in a long time. It seems like this kind of relaxed focus on each particular pose, each particular stretching sensation could be especially beneficial for people with migraines, who in my experience are often somewhat disconnected from their bodies or symptoms.

After the session I couldn't help but think to myself, "Is this what having nothing on your mind really feels like?" I had a renewed sense of joy and excitement about life, and yet there were almost no thoughts crossing my mind. The only thought I kept having was, "What next?"

I have always been a big believer that physiological and psychological issues are highly interconnected and mutually influential. So perhaps I have found a golden formula, for myself at least, in achieving relaxed focus:

Yoga + GTD = Mind Like Water

Rachelle would be proud.

Posted by Lisa at 09:53 AM | Comments (3)

April 16, 2006

Natives & immigrants in a changing world

My how the times have changed... I was just reflecting over Easter breakfast with my family and friends about new technologies. My mother recently purchased the MacBook Pro with an Intel chip inside, and though she's the least tech-savvy in the family, she arguably has the best machine.

One of the features she wasn't quite sure she would use is the built in webcam. As I listened to her chatting about it, I was struck that her idea of how to make use of it was vastly different from my own. This is because, as someone recently informed me, I am a native to technology and she is an immigrant. There's an interesting article about this native-immigrant distinction here.

Her thought was that her webcam could only be useful for taking pictures of young children to share with family members in distant locations. For her, it was a tool for connecting about the real, the now, for bridging distances.

My mind jumped to web-culture specific memes, like this. I would use my new webcam to do something creative or expressive, then share it on the web. To a native, we see a new toy and think, "What kinds of interesting and creative activities can I invent in order to interact with my new tool?"

My mother wisely pointed out that this kind of perceptual shift has been going on for many years, long before recent technology ever involved a microchip. Her analogy was that when painting was originally developed, we used it to capture portraits of real life, to record history, and to preserve the moment. Then once photography came on the scene, painting became outdated for those purposes, and it took on a whole new life. She cited Picasso as an obvious example of someone who painted for a very different motive than to capture the visual realities of life. Instead, Pablo captured the realities of life, but through a distinctly new and creative lens.

All of these ruminations about the quickly changing world seem especially appropriate given what I came across in my morning reading of Soft Hay Will Catch You, a lovely collection of children's poems gathered by my friend Sandy Lyne. In his introduction he begins, "My parents were part of that remarkable generation who went from the horse and buggy to the walk on the moon, embracing more change than any generation in history knew." A very eloquent way, I think, of describing how the learning curve of life took a dramatic leap around that time.

All this leaves me to wonder about the changes that will inevitably appear in the lives of my future children. I'm slightly horrified to wonder-- what kind of music will they listen to? Perhaps more importantly, with what technology will they be natives, and I the immigrant? I spend a fair amount of my time "translating" for the brave immigrants in my life, but surely this will not always be the case. Something worth pondering...

Posted by Lisa at 12:35 PM

April 04, 2006

Unusual Capture Tools (A Confession)

One of the things that has always intrigued me about GTD, or rather about GTDers, is the wide range of tools we choose to capture our ideas. It makes sense that when a bunch of diverse people learn about writing everything down to keep it off your mind, some creative capture tools emerge. Here are my musings on some of my favorites. I welcome your comments on cool tools of your own!

-3 by 5 cards- stackable, lined or unlined, easily papercliped together for portability. The big con I see is that they're fairly thick, not something I'd want in my pocket.

-My Notetaker with a twist- I decided to take the idea of our popular Notetaker wallet and create my own version of it. It's essentially a paper pad (the same ones we put in our wallets) tucked into the business card slot in my leather Palm carrying case. My expandable pen fits into the center section, which is normally used for an extra graffiti wand. The result of this little recipe is a paper capture tool for quickly gathering up my thoughts on the left, and the PDA where I often input these thoughts on the right.

-The Winner, my absolute favorite of the capture tools I've adopted:
I have a standard yellow post it pad attached with velcro to the stearing wheel of my car. The velcro allows me to remove it and switch in a new pad when I need to. I know it's dorky, I know it doesn't look particularly cool, but I can't tell you how many times I've had an important thought while caught in traffic or driving along the beautiful California coastline. The pen that goes with it lives on my dashboard, so anytime I'm in my car I'm ready to offload my thoughts. I don't recommend anyone write while driving, of course. It's just such a handy way to eliminate fumbling for my purse when in transit.

Finally, I just wanted to pay a little tribute to my friend Eric Mack for his great blog on capture tools, one of his ideas involves capturing while in the shower- brilliant, I think. Besides, it makes me feel better about my post-it note confession!

Posted by Lisa at 09:21 AM | Comments (3)