Why I have a glass of smoothie and write a (very short) to do list everyday

Wouldn’t it be lovely if life was a soft fluffy creative bubble that we could roll around in, going where the inspiration took us, fuelled by a limitless amount of time and energy. Sadly it isn’t. At least mine isn’t, and so I drink a glass of smoothie every day (and make a very short to do list).

Making the time really count

The amount of time and energy I have to spend of my creative endeavours every day is limited. I need to make those hours (sometimes minutes) really count. I also need to do all the everyday things that keep my body and soul together. I need to keep myself fed and watered, I need to keep my home (reasonably!) together. I need to earn money.

Autopilot habits

I’ve learnt that the only way to do all those things is to be as efficient with my time and energy as I can be whilst also leaving room for play and following some inspiration from time to time. For a lot of the mundane everyday things it makes sense for me to cultivate simple habits that take little energy, thought or brainpower to achieve. I think of these as my autopilot habits, and they mean I then have time and energy left over for what I think of as my Important Work.

Drinking a glass of smoothie in the morning is a simple habit that means I can think a little bit less about what healthy things I need to eat each day. My autopilot is taking care of me. If I also go for a short walk every day at the same time, I am taking care of myself physically without having to plan for it. It is much easier to always have a bottle of water on my desk or in my bag to reach for every half hour to keep myself hydrated, than to have to think that I’m thirsty (usually by the time we’re thirsty we’re already dehydrated) and go and find something to drink. I’m sure you get the idea.

Ten minutes of daily planning with a cup of tea

If I also spend ten minutes every morning with a cup of tea thinking about what the most important things I want to get done today are (maybe things to move my Important Work on a stage, or the shopping I need to do), I then have something to keep me effortlessly on track for the day. Without it I am apt to wander through my day in a brain foggy aimless shuffle and ending it without any clear idea of what I’ve done. I know, I spent years like that and I wasn’t very happy.

Having plenty done on autopilot means I can concentrate my time and energy of other things, fun things sometimes, following inspiration other times, or just focusing on my current project.

Admiring those that can do without lists

Now, I have a huge admiration for people who can do without lists. I particularly enjoyed Lisa Baldwin’s recent blog post about trying an experiment to give up lists (and things that need lists). I wonder if Lisa and other people who can live in this sort of way already have a very evolved autopilot, perhaps one they don’t even notice, that takes good care of them, looking after their physical needs whist at the same time leaving room for the sort of present moment creative freedom they enjoy. I’m going to watch Lisa’s experiment with interest.

Avoiding the tyranny of lists

Of course lists can become a tyranny too. They aren’t always our friends. They can grow and grow and pile on the pressure of oughts that just leave us unable to do anything. I try not to let mine do that to me. I do have a long list of ideas and things I’d like to get done, but I’m very aware I’ll never be able to do everything on it. It is there largely so I can get ideas out of my head and put them somewhere safe where I feel I won’t forget them. If I don’t do that I waste a huge amount of energy trying to keep ideas and tasks juggling around in my sieve-like brain. That’s a huge waste of my precious energy.

My daily list is always very short. Today it says:

1. Write blog post
2. Walk Ben

I can cross off the first item now. That makes me feel very happy.