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Welcome to this edition of the Voyages of Discovery Newsletter, the newsletter that is all about you and your voyages of discovery of your genius. If you missed our previous newsletters, get them here from our archives.
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Your Energy Cycles
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Do you know your natural energy cycles?
The death of Time Management
Time Management is dead! Long live energy management!
No, we are not talking of the sustainability of the planet! We are talking about your personal sustainability.
Time Management was (and probably still is today!) the Holy Grail of productivity. Every management guru, self improvement aficionado, professional speaker worth their salt extolls the benefits of managing your time. Their refrain is: Manage your time and you manage your life!
Well, I am about to throw a bucket of cold water on all those sermons. You see, for quite some time I have been noticing a phenomenon that was happening with me. However, I was not able to nail it down exactly. It is likely that it touches your life too.
Is Productivity a cliche?
I had been noticing that in spite of managing my time reasonably well (I have a good system of setting long term goals and breaking them down into smaller projects and assigning tasks for the day), I was ending up achieving inconsistent productivity levels over a day. There were times when even a short time slot of 30 minutes saw my output sky rocket. The ideas were coming in a flurry, there was amazing clarity in my thoughts. And then there were those other times of the day when plodding through an hour or more did not produce that kind of kinetic force. It was weird.
To be fair, I did know that I was a morning person and that the early hours of the day were magical for me. Possibly, I was even leveraging that to some extent. But something was not there, a critical piece was missing from that puzzle. Each day I thought about it but then nothing changed it. It was like one of those morsels of food that had gotten wedged in your teeth and no amount of tongue manoeuvrings could dislodge it. You knew it was there but were not able to fix it. It was frustrating.
And then it happened! The trigger took place. As was usual for me, I was reading some recent book reviews. To digress a bit, book reviews are mother lodes of inspiration, they not only are a take on a book by somebody else but also from that come perspectives that you will never discover just reading the book summary yourself, Try it, it is amazing! The particular book review was about a book titled: Manage your Day to Day by a motley of authors all renowned in their own field.
Energy Cycles
One particular extract from the book hit a nerve. And then the light came on!! Here was my answer, the missing piece of the puzzle. I was elated and a wave of anticipation surged through me. Dopamine activation must have also soared (dopamine is the neurotransmitter that is activated when you experience pleasure or are very happy, it is different from adrenalin which is just raw excitement). "Start with the rhythm of your energy levels. Certain times of day are especially conducive to focused creativity thanks to circadian rhythms of arousal and mental alertness."
Your body goes through what are known as circadian rhythms of arousal and mental alertness
Put in simple terms, you operate at 1000 watts at certain times of the day and at 10 watts at other times. Now clearly when you are running at 1000 watts you will be bristling with ideas, having clarity of thought and raring to take a shot at that project you have been postponing endlessly. You are on song. And not just the focus part of it. Your output will soar with that kind of energy. As said earlier, 30 minutes will be equivalent to a couple of hours or an entire day of operating at 10 watts. Finally, you will also be conserving your energy by accomplishing more in a fraction of time. So, the benefits are endless.
Moral of the story: Reserve your creative or most critical projects at a time of day when you are at 1000 watts.
In the same book referred to earlier, the authors (multiple ones) also advocate taking breaks after 90 minutes of focused energy. And not just any break. They recommend that after this compressed period of focus, your break should take the form of a mindless activity - like stacking your book shelf, arranging your work desk, photocopying something and so forth. This allows the brain to relax after that earlier intense involvement.
I have also noticed with myself that breaks do something else. They provide space between your thoughts and any action that you need to take. For example, after a concentrated period of idea generation, the break allows the brain and the sub conscious to actually digest what you have fed it. In fact, this is why the single greatest boon that you can grant yourself is a short but good nap (during the day) and undisturbed sleep at night. There is no better way to take a break. Sleep is a supreme catalyst. It can morph a crazy, preposterous idea or thought that you fed your brain into a virally successful project.
My Schedule Over the years with changes frequently and now reinforced after understanding the phenomenon, I have now zeroed in on a schedule which leverages my own Circadian Rhythms. I devote a big chunk of my time in the morning after the gym exercise to my first priority. - creating and designing training courses and modules on financial concepts for non-financial managers. I have relegated other tasks to later in the day and this includes e-mail communications (bar the ones where the roof is caving in or something is on fire). I cannot describe to you enough what it has done to my output, results and ultimately goals. I am also more energetic than before. It seems magical but is actually a discipline that you build in yourself. Finite Time, Infinite Tasks
It is always that same conundrum. Too many tasks chasing too little time. If you are not careful, you may have passed up huge chunks of your lifetime battling this monster. Unless you figure out a way to understand intuitively and physically as well your energy cycles and then leverage them, you are a good candidate for burnout. Don't let that happen to you.
Listen to what your body is telling you. Harness your own Circadian Rhythms. I guarantee you will suddenly start smelling the fragrance of the flowers in your small garden (which you pass every day but never notice) and the chirp of the birds. That is a good sign, it means your heart and life are slowing down to allow these transformational sensibilities to return to you...wow, what a feeling that is!!!!
Let me leave you with this thought.
You conserve energy, you automatically conserve time
You leverage energy, you will achieve more in less time
You achieve more in less time, you will not burn out
And yes, you will have energy to smell the roses!!
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Awaken the Picasso in you
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Did you ever look for the Picasso in you?
The "I cannot" syndrome
"I cannot draw anything worthwhile to save my life. Drawing is a gift that a few lucky individuals are born with."
Could this be your thought process too? Do you really believe that only a few gifted individuals can draw anything of substance?
If yes, I must disillusion you a great deal. I seem to be on a disillusionment spree in this newsletter but bear with me. I will also provide that much needed dose of encouragement.
Listen to what Dr. Betty Edwards author of the best selling book, Draw on the Right side of your Brain, has to say:
"Why do we assume that a rare and special 'artistic' talent is required for drawing? We don't make that assumption about other kinds of abilities."
"If you can catch a baseball, thread a needle, or hold a pencil and write your name, you can learn to draw skillfully, artistically, and creatively."
Seeing is Believing
In fact, according to her, it is not the "drawing" which is the problem, it is the "seeing" which is at fault.
Many centuries ago, one of the greatest geniuses of all time and an artist without parallel (his singular masterpiece among many, the Mona Lisa - the Lady with the strange smile adorns the haloed walls of the museum in the Vatican as testimony), Leonardo Da Vinci, first pointed out that in drawing, seeing is more important than the actual act of drawing.
The Upside Down Method
Leonardo was so particular about the "seeing" part of a drawing or painting, he came up with a revolutionary idea (something which he regularly seemed to do), of drawing or painting something in an upside down position. It has led many decades later to the great discovery and understanding of the roles of left and right brain in the process. Dr. Betty Edwards also recommends this activity to ease into the process those who dither from drawing or are convinced they cannot draw to save themselves.
The Left and Right BrainsIt is likely that during Leonardo's time, research into left and right brain activities had not taken place but it is again testimony to his genius that he frequently took paths that nobody had forged before or ever imagined. His sketch of a properly functioning parachute (whose principles are applicable to this day) a couple of hundred years before the Wright Brothers invented and perfected the airplane is a case in point. Today the role of left and right brains in the activity of drawing, painting or any other creative pursuit is established. The principle is very simple. Drawing is a right brain activity but most times our dominant (and often tyrannical) left brain calls the shots. And because the left brain tends to be judgemental in everything as opposed to the free flow approach of the right brain, it admonishes you when you are drawing. In particular, if you are drawing something already existing, the left brain brings its entire arsenal of "can do / cannot do" judgements. Dr. Betty Edwards also uses this activity in her drawing program. The premise of the Upside Down drawing is clear. To silence the left brain and let the right brain take over. You do this by turning a picture or drawing upside down. Have you ever tried this? The simplest picture or drawing when turned upside down becomes a totally unrecognizable object. Aha, victory! The left brain has nothing to say for it is looking at a unfamiliar object and thus the reins of the drawing activity are rightfully (pun intended) handed over to the right brain. Actually, it boils down to whether you can see objects clearly in all their details. If you can, you should be able to draw. Then it simply becomes a matter of silencing the judgemental left brain and allow the creative right brain to take over the task. 5 Critical Parts of SeeingDr. Betty Edwards proves through her book the following 5 critical "parts of seeing" 1. Edges - seeing where one thing ends and another starts 2. Spaces - seeing what lies beside and beyond 3. Relationships - seeing in perspective and proportion 4. Lights - seeing things in degree of values 5. Shadows - seeing things in degree of values To the above she added another holistic approach: gestalt literally meaning sum of the parts. Here she talks about seeing the whole and its parts. So, at the end of the day, drawing is not a skill reserved for a gifted few, it is equally accessible to all. However, you need to cultivate the art of seeing, observing, noticing as opposed to just casting your eyes on something.
The image shown of Asterisk the Gladiator is a sketch which I drew when I was in college. It keeps reminding me about the Picasso in me who I seem to have sent into an eternal slumber since my sketching days decades ago (it actually seems like centuries!).
Let me leave you with this thought to consider.
The next time you drive your car, notice what exact color or hue it is. Can you describe it in detail? If you can, be prepared, for you might well unearth the Picasso in you!
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| Next Issue (see you in September 2013) |
 | | The road to your passion |
Design is ubiquitous. It touches all facets of your life and every waking moment. Read why and how.
Is technology your master or your slave. No honest? It makes a difference! Find out how.
and many more......
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