I spent the rest of my day with eyes peeled for opportunities to give back to my community, friends, family, anyone, via simple next action steps. Many people I know talk about not having enough time to commit to service work and volunteering, at least not as much as they'd like to. It occurs to me now that there are different levels of service, i.e. projects on the 10,000 ft. Horizon of Focus and next actions at the "Runway" level (GTD, page 51-53). There is a problem with the way we tend to think about service as being limited to 10,000 ft. Projects and ongoing 20,000 ft. Areas of Focus. This attitude makes it easy to throw our hands up in the air and say, "Sorry, I'm just too busy to participate with that!" I count myself among the guilty on this one. What if being of service didn't require clocking in monthly or weekly to the same organization or the same behavior? In fact there are hundreds of daily opportunities to be of service using the wisdom of GTD to immediately complete actions that require 2 minutes or less.

Here are some ideas from my own day today to help you get going with 2 minute or less service. I'm certain that it will look different for everyone, and I would love to hear your ideas and suggests about other 2 minute service actions. (Side note: remember, service can be to yourself as well as others- sometimes taking care of yourself has the best long term benefits because of what you are able to contribute to others when you are rested and healthy.)

Pick up some trash
Call the neighbor whose dog seems lost in the rain
Recycle something
Pick up the change someone dropped while standing in line
Tell a cashier you appreciate them (better yet tell their manager)
Take a 2 minute stretch break in service to your health
Comment on a blog or website you like
Email a friend who could use some support- send something heartfelt or funny
Support a budding artist or musician you know
Donate to a charity online in 2 minutes or less
Give someone 2 minute or less tech support
Recommend a business/practitioner/venue to someone who is looking
Give someone a 2 minute neck massage
Listen, really listen, to someone for an extra 2 minutes beyond what the conversation required
Tell someone "keep the change"
Smile at someone

What's so powerful about these commonplace gestures?

The number one excuse for not being of service is "I don't have time." But one thing I have been learning from the Getting Things Done approach is that I am in control of all of my time and all of my agreements. In effect, I single-handedly create my priorities and to what I give my resources (time, money, energy, etc.) Using that attitude to my advantage, it becomes clear that I can make time for anything that matters to me.

"Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little."
- Edmund Burke

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world."
- Anne Frank