Last year, I published my New Year's Resolutions (HERE), which helped me hit weight-loss and other goals. At the start of this year, a reader asked if I use the end of the year to "reflect." No, I don't. Even my 13 year-old son, when he was 7, had already picked up on that part of my philosophy.
"Where's your book we were reading last night?"
"I don't know, Dad."
"But we had it right here!" (I was getting agitated.) "Walter, come on! You gotta know where the book is; we had it here last night, right before you went to bed."
"Dad," he said, "I don't think about the past."
I do sometimes think about the past. But when I do, especially if I move from "thinking about" to "dwelling on," Gary Gulman's "Holy Trinity of Regret" (would've, could've, should've) tend to rise up in my mind, just as thinking about the future generates worries and concerns over things that probably won't happen. So, as they say, "Now is a gift. That's why they call it the present."
"Now" is when I'll write up my 20/20 Vision to improve my daily routine. I've settled on the following 3R Routine:
Rise, Run, Rest
My plan is to "Rise" each day with the 3 x 3 focus: Think of 3 things for which I'm grateful, 3 things I'm looking forward to, and 3 things I can do today to make my life even better. I learned the 3 x 3 from Simpleology's "Little Calendar That Brainwashes You." On my new calendar, I record the number of alcoholic drinks and "0," "1," or "2" for the times doing 20-minute Transcendental Meditation (TM) the previous day. That's my morning "Rise."
The day then begins with "Run." Not literally. I hate running. An exercise program that I don't like is one that I won't do. So "run" begins with writing. Most days, I write for 10 - 20 minutes, whatever comes to mind. I title the day's entry with whatever fragment of a dream I remember. Funny how knowing that I'm going to write about a dream leads to remembering more dreams. Morning pages done, I walk to the gym and work out.
"Run" is my shorthand for "living life." Most days, probably like you, I'm on the go. Traveling to clients, presenting, volunteering, rehearsing or songwriting. There's more to do than time to do it. Or at least it appeared that way. I'm using one of Stuart Wilde's mantras, "I've got all the time in the world," along with Steve Chandler's, "Do the one thing," and voilá! I've found the time I need. And that includes Rest.
This year I'm prioritizing rest and sleep. Matthew Walkers' Why We Sleep convinced me. I also want to make sure I take that 20 minutes during the day for my afternoon TM. I remember a monk's answer to one of my staff's questions, "What if I don't have 20 minutes in my day to use for meditation?" The monk answered, "Then you need an hour."
So there's my 3R Routine for 20/20 Vision this year: Rise, Run, Rest. Like last year, I'll post how it's going for me. And I welcome your comments, questions, and routines!