February, 2023
I’ve come to think that the fact that you meditate is more important than when you meditate – the right time of day is whenever you can make it happen. What I have found, though, is that for me, mornings are best, and the earlier the better. It’s partly that it sets the tone for the day, but mainly that it is just much easier for me to finish a sit with less fidgeting before my day has gotten started.
Sometimes, though, in the middle of the day it is helpful to just push the reset button. It may not be as peaceful as first thing in the morning, since I am trying to clear out what has been happening so I can focus on the next part of my day, but if I stick with it, it can do the trick.
A lot of people say the same thing about meditating at the end of the day, to help them sleep better and leave the concerns of the day behind. I can relate, but for that I have a different ritual (a topic for another day).
January, 2023
I have a new favorite thing. Problem is, I don’t know exactly what to call it – virtual co-working, body-doubling, lots of terms for it. In a nutshell, I’ve gotten very attached to a new productivity habit. In its simplest form it involves signing on to an on-line platform with one or more other people. They might be strangers, they might be people you know, they might be people you come to know.
Productivity hacks may not seem like something that squares with “the rest of my time” vibe. But, I find myself with lots and lots of projects – art projects, podcasts I want to listen to, on-line classes I’ve enrolled in . . . . everything sounds interesting, but I like to finish things, or at least get far enough into it to make a decision to abandon it.
So, when I saw one of these advertised that focused on getting through on-line courses you’ve signed up for, it really spoke to me. The organizer claims that only about 5% of on-line courses are ever finished. I have all kinds of art and writing and general self-exploration classes to work through. I have a bunch of books that are piled up.
In fact, my word of the year is Resolution. Just because it’s the fun stuff instead of the have-to stuff doesn’t mean there’s no urge to finish it.
The setup of these sessions vary, but essentially they are a means to foster focus. Some are more explicit in having you share your goal for the time and report back, and some are looser. Some are general in scope and some are focused on particular types of tasks.
The group I am most active on now is focused on getting writing done. The “room” opens to mics and cameras off, then part-way through the session there is a quick optional discussion of what you are working on, or what you would like feedback on, then we go back in to silent co-working. I don’t know what the psychology of it is exactly, but I think it somehow satisfies our need to feel we are multi-tasking by being “on” the call while doing other things. Or maybe it’s that the appointment of being “on” the call is just a little more of a discipline than setting aside time on our calendar. Or maybe it’s that you can tell everyone else that you are “on a call” during the time, so they will leave you alone and you will behave like you should be left alone.
Here are a few takeaways for me:
- When I go in with a specific talk in mind, IT GETS DONE! Things that have been hanging on my to do list because they felt like they would take too much time, get done
- Many of these groups seem to have developed for writers, and others for freelancers looking for some structural support to their workdays, but they have expanded as have all of our virtual offerings in the past few years to a wide variety of specialty sessions as well
- Yes, there are in-person versions (see some of the descriptions below)
- This is is a different experience than something like Slack – it’s not about collaboration, it’s about concentration
- Once you start looking, they are everywhere, but they also come and go.
- Every one has a slightly different vibe, so although commitment is important, it’s equally important to give yourself the grace to try a few and move on if you aren’t inspired.
So where can you look?
I know of two platforms with both free and paid versions, though I am sure there are many others. One is called Focusmate and the other is called Caveday.
There are platforms like Shut Up & Write, which is focused on writers or at least the task of writing, and has both in-person and virtual meetings, as well as optional challenges and prompts. You will also find a number of options on MeetUp, where you can browse offerings from the home page, then create an account or log in to see the details and join a particular group.
Or, find a friend or group of friends, just like you might recruit an accountability buddy to help you maintain an exercise program, and set yourself up – zoom accounts, or teams accounts, or whatever aren’t that hard to come by these days. Personally, I like more than one person, and I like a way to help others find you so there is a possible pipeline, because that decreases the pressure on any one person and reduces the chances that you’ll show up to an empty space.
There, that’s one thing done!
January, 2023
This #thankfulthursday art teacher shout-out is to Roben-Marie Smith (@robenmarie) for all I’ve learned as a member of Makers Tech U.
The doors are closed now as Roben-Marie is moving on/moving back to other artsy-interests but her #techsavvyartist advice has been tremendously helpful to me, and I’m sure to many others.
The only tricky part of this post was figuring out what image to use, because there are traces of her influence in many places in my digital eco-system. This time it’s not about creating art, it’s about the art of creating the ways your art can be seen.
January, 2023
Dry spells happen. Sometimes I know why and sometimes I don’t. My usual strategy if I’m just not feeling it, or if it feels like I just don’t have time, is to let go of any time goals and just sit down for a minute. A minute or two and a few deep breaths might be all that happens, or it might be just what I need to settle in.
It’s kind of like other forms of exercise, once again. When you miss a day or even a week, we tell ourselves we blew it and talk ourselves out of starting again, because we feel we’re starting from scratch. You aren’t climbing a mountain, you didn’t fall all the way down and have to start all over, you just have to start again.
December, 2022
See this little girl? When I look at this picture of myself at a long-ago family holiday, she seems a little, I don’t know, stunned and overwhelmed. Not unhappy, just in some kind of shock. Apparently the holidays have always been a bit of a mixed bag for me emotionally.
In the run-up to Christmas in my house, my role is to supply the sweets. It started a while ago when the person who used to do it, my brother’s mother-in-law, was “lost” to us through divorce. Plus, I’m the only one from out of town, so hosting dinner isn’t something I can contribute.
I take a lot of satisfaction in it, which is good because it’s a lot – about 50 dozen in total this year, 9 different varieties. It’s a big family, and at least in my mind, different people have different favorites. Then, some year ago as in most families, we added the gluten-free crowd, and I learned some new tricks. Plus, every few years, I just get bored and throw in something new.
Again, because I’m the one from “away”, I usually travel for holidays – in fact, the pandemic years were the only years in my adult life I woke up in my own house on Christmas morning. So this year, which is either a “revenge” travel year or an “on the bubble” year depending on your point of view, we made the decision to have a family of two Christmas in our own house. Turns out, it was also a blizzard year, so it’s doubtful our car trip would have gone well anyway.
But the cookies still made the trip. And I think a picture of me this Christmas morning would have been a little less stunned-looking. A gift from sixty-something me to that little girl.
