Have you ever been at a point where you can't make a decision?
I find that when I have a backlog in the office I have that problem. The solution is to sort through everything on my desk and organize it into levels of priority. I separate personal and business things. Then I take the business material and sort it into several stacks: things to be filed, bills, things which require my attention and things which can be thrown away. Once I get into that sorting mode everything falls into place. Occasionally I fill a box with things that don't fit any of those categories and that's a really bad move. That box will hang around waiting for my attention for a YEAR! Better to deal with things right away, than to let them build up.
I wonder if that's a metaphor for life....
Recently, I heard that when you can't decide what you need to do with your life, you should do something for someone else. Perhaps that puts things into perspective and makes your decisions easier. Or, perhaps while you are focusing on someone else, your brain can go to work on your own problems without the distraction of worry.
Cleaning the house, or getting all the weeding done, sometimes accomplishes the same thing for me. It's as though by physically "getting my house in order," I am free to focus on personal issues.
I'm a Libra. I don't tend to put much weight into things astrological, but I am willing to accept that frequently I can see both sides to an issue. And some issues have more than two sides. The larger the number of options, the more difficult it is to decide what to do. Perhaps using the office analogy, I can put some choices to the side for future thought, throw out those that don't apply, and that will leave me with the ones worth considering.
I think I'd rather do something for someone else. It sounds like a nicer way to spend the day.
Comments (2)
It is well that the world has people who can figure out ways of getting past their sticking points. Good for you!! Your method, prioritizing items on your desk, certainly beats my "method."
When the "haystack" (not the goody kind) on my desk gets too large, when company is coming, or when I was leaving the house for a few weeks (to work in another state), I swoop(ed) everything into a box or bin and hid(e) it in the closet. That way, my desk is clean and I can pretend to have dealt with the issue. Months (years?) later, when I discover the stash in the closet, it becomes obvious that 99% of the stuff goes into the trash. (It is well that I didn't try this method at my places of employment. Oh, wait. I did! Everything got locked in the "classified" file!) Truly, working at the Big Bomber Store was good training. The chief engineer insisted that all desks be perfectly clear, at night. Our "in" baskets and phones (for those few who had them) were stashed in our chairs and pushed under our desks. It took about 12 years for the training to wear off.
Posted by Cop Car | December 22, 2005 6:19 AM
Posted on December 22, 2005 06:19
I've done the "sweep everything into a box and forget about it" routine. You're right...99% of it can be thrown away the next year. I have a box of floppy disks and CDs I'm going to have to look through, but I believe that the rest can be pitched!
I LIKE the idea of having to clear off the desk each night. But....I can't imagine where I would find places for all the things on my desk. This is another whole blog entry. Thanks for the idea!
Posted by buffy | December 22, 2005 7:39 AM
Posted on December 22, 2005 07:39