by Kim Brewster
Are you a fan of cooking shows? How about home remodeling shows? Cable tv offers us a plethora of opportunities to show our creative side, enhance our hobbies or make us better at our jobs.
Take Emeril, since anyone who has watched a cooking show or seen his cookware at the store may be familiar with him. His countertop has bowls of different sizes, knives, spoons, cutting boards, hot pads; his cooktop has the pans. In essence, he has laid out the tools he will use to prepare the meal. His tools allow him to ready the ingredients – seasonings in their separate containers, cutting the meats/vegetables and heating the oil/butter/broth. The actual cooking process itself is rather seamless and, BAM, it’s done.
The home remodeling shows make painting walls look so easy. If you dissect what is done before the paint is applied to the wall, you will see a drip cloth, paint tray, brushes (angled or straight edge), a can of paint, stir stick, roller and roller cover, paint can opener, and a vacuum cleaner or lint-free cloth. These are the basic tools. After dust and dirt are removed from the walls, the drip cloth is spread, the paint is opened and stirred and poured into the paint tray, the roller cover is on the roller, you are ready to apply the paint. Now ultimately how the actual painting application goes is dependent on having a steady hand with an eye for neatness.
What is your prep process to begin your day at your desk (after you have pre-prepped by exercising and eating a nutritious breakfast)? (1) Do you dive right into you email inbox? (2) Do you spread papers and files all over your work surface? (3) Are your desk tools (pens, portable note taking device, PDA) readily available and easy to reach? (4) Is your Outlook Today tool set up so that you can quickly scan your Calendar Today and Tasks? (5) Do you take a few deep breaths?
Only three of the above options are necessary and the remaining two are not useful. Just like a cook or a painter, your day will be more effective because you took the time to physically prepare for your day, ultimately saving time. At the end of the day you will feel confident your tasks, emails and projects were handled thoughtfully and expeditiously.
Did you remember to savor the aroma of garlic in warm olive oil or bask in the glow of your freshly painted walls?
Showing posts with label preparation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label preparation. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Friday, July 25, 2008
Get that Monkey Off of My Back
by Kristi Willis
I am participating in my first full sprint triathlon in three years on Sunday and I have pre-race jitters. I felt them for the first time this morning when I was doing my last big workout before the race. As I was riding my bike around the neighborhood, the thought “you haven’t prepared enough” ran through my mind. Ugh!
When I did the Danskin triathlon in 2005, the race spokeswoman told us that this would happen while we were training and even during the race. She said monkeys would jump on our backs and try to weigh us down from being successful. And she was right. Smack dab in the middle of my quiet street, I had a monkey on the back of my bicycle.
I was able to silence it long enough to have a good workout, but then I heard it again while I was getting ready for work. And then it popped up again while I was driving into the office. Clearly, trying to ignore the monkey wasn’t going to make it go away.
I decided that the best way to silence the monkey was to look back over all the things I have done in the last six weeks to get ready. On my flight to Arizona today, I opened up Outlook and went through my calendar starting with the Danskin relay that I did in June.
Despite a busy travel schedule, vacation and taking care of my niece and nephew for several days, I have managed to exercise at least 5 days each week for at least an hour or more. I even swam a mile and a half the day I moved. I’ve trained on my hybrid and my road bike, practiced using my new bike clip pedals and have all my equipment lined up.
Sure, I could have worked out more. I could be in better shape, have eaten better, slept more, but I have done enough. I am ready. And after looking through the list of what I’ve been up to for the last six weeks, I feel pretty good about it. I’m not trying to win; I just want to finish injury free. And I will – without the monkey on my back!
Do you have a monkey on your back? What are you going to do to get rid of it?
I am participating in my first full sprint triathlon in three years on Sunday and I have pre-race jitters. I felt them for the first time this morning when I was doing my last big workout before the race. As I was riding my bike around the neighborhood, the thought “you haven’t prepared enough” ran through my mind. Ugh!
When I did the Danskin triathlon in 2005, the race spokeswoman told us that this would happen while we were training and even during the race. She said monkeys would jump on our backs and try to weigh us down from being successful. And she was right. Smack dab in the middle of my quiet street, I had a monkey on the back of my bicycle.
I was able to silence it long enough to have a good workout, but then I heard it again while I was getting ready for work. And then it popped up again while I was driving into the office. Clearly, trying to ignore the monkey wasn’t going to make it go away.
I decided that the best way to silence the monkey was to look back over all the things I have done in the last six weeks to get ready. On my flight to Arizona today, I opened up Outlook and went through my calendar starting with the Danskin relay that I did in June.
Despite a busy travel schedule, vacation and taking care of my niece and nephew for several days, I have managed to exercise at least 5 days each week for at least an hour or more. I even swam a mile and a half the day I moved. I’ve trained on my hybrid and my road bike, practiced using my new bike clip pedals and have all my equipment lined up.
Sure, I could have worked out more. I could be in better shape, have eaten better, slept more, but I have done enough. I am ready. And after looking through the list of what I’ve been up to for the last six weeks, I feel pretty good about it. I’m not trying to win; I just want to finish injury free. And I will – without the monkey on my back!
Do you have a monkey on your back? What are you going to do to get rid of it?
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