Designated Do-Nothing Days!

OK, so yesterday was effectively the final day of my “5-year plan”. And it was one of the more productive, unproductive days. I’ll often refer to these as “Designated Do-Nothing Days, or DDND for short”, but in essence it’s my Sabbath. Really, I think more people need to make a concerted effort to “relax” or “do nothing” once a week. It really makes a huge difference.

It appears as though my biggest hurdle right now is overcoming my lack of patience. Even though I understand the “big picture” better than most, and I enjoy the experience of the “process” possibly more than the end result, I’m still rather impulsive and sulk whenever I don’t get my way. There’s no doubt my impatience has contributed in a positive way as well; because of it, I’m rarely content with slow, inefficient systems. I’m always on the lookout for shortcuts, cutting fat, or looking for ways to improve efficiency.

Most of us learn early-on in life that the term “shortcut” is often met with negative connotations. And yes, most of my so-called shortcuts end up failing miserably, but the point is that they STILL need to be explored, and then re-explored periodically. Innovation can only happen when new ideas are introduced and tested. I often make the self-deprecating remark that “my life is a circus”. One of the leading reasons for this is the fact that I’m almost always experimenting with new ideas, and often fail miserably, often with comedic results.

Moving on, I had a chance to read most of my “blogs” from 2001. My personality hasn’t really changed that much since then, but my perspective certainly has. Back then, I was most definitely “wandering aimlessly”, just hoping someone out there would throw me a bone and be able to connect. I was missing any sense of flow, and it was also around the same time my “business” was stagnating. For all intents and purposes, I was stuck in a rut, and sore about a number of things. In the end, I somehow emerged as the victor even though my spirit had been beaten down and clubbed to death. In certain aspects, I never really recovered.

For one, I never valued the company of my friends nearly as much as I used to. Maybe this is a part of growing up, or perhaps the fact that my livelihood was much too dependent on the amount of contact with my friends. This has bothered me quite considerably, in the fact that I’ve felt indifferent towards others. Fortunately, I have improved in this area, and I’m hoping to be better able to connect in the future. The other major area was my entrepreneurial spirit. While I still had aspirations of owning my own business, the drive to do so diminished considerably. Obviously, my decision to “re-open” ZA Enterprizes shows evidence that I’m willing to give this another shot, even though my heart isn’t 100% into it.