ITERATING TO SUCCESS

I'm trying to figure out how to fit all the self-improvement activities into my life that I need to do to live out my remaining days upright and cognitively engaged in reality.  Both of those things are goals I've been grasping for my entire life, but at 65-1/2 I see the horizon fast approaching and while they say "It's never too late", that's a lie.  Sometimes it really is too late.  (I like adding the half-birthday thing in my age because it makes me feel like a 5 year old when stretching to the next age was exciting.  Now I don't think it's exciting so much as a testament to "made it through another six months...yay me!")

Whenever Hub goes away I'm like a teenager left home alone.  I am completely lazy, hang out with my friends 'til all hours (some nights close to 8:00 p.m.!), watch way too much TV (mostly MSNBC and Frankie and Grace on Netflix, but still...), scroll through Facebook and read every political post, wander aimlessly around my house and gardens, and do absolutely nothing I said I'd do -- until the last possible moment.

For example, today I plan to unpack about 6 boxes of books that got put away in May when we had our floors refinished.  Some will continue to live in my house and others will go to book Heaven -- where I will sell their angelic souls to Half Price Books and live off my earnings.  It's the least those books can do for me.  They nearly bankrupted me with their original purchase prices.  I also need to do some weeding, pruning, laundry, bird feeder cleaning, banking, bill paying, dusting and vacuuming.  Additionally I have a date to do a Staycation Craft Day with one of the Shiny Sisters before we take off for a retirement party for the other Shiny Sister late this afternoon.  (I've written about this trio before:  http://myviewfromhere-donna.blogspot.com/2016/06/words-that-actually-came-from-my-mouth.html.)  I'm sure it will be easy-breezy to accomplish this list today.

But when will I fit in my Yoga Practice?  Weight Training?  Walking/Aerobic Activity?  Brain Games? Meditation Practice?  Massage Therapy?  Drinking 8 glasses of water?  Cooking organic, non-GMO, fresh foods from scratch that I purchase at the Farmer's Market?  Flossing?!?

It's no wonder that good intentions are drowned by a wave of responsibilities.  But I go back to the "Not that much more time to get my shit together" admonition and realize that I maybe could use my aimless wandering time to better benefit.

Every time I, or someone I know, has a health scare (more and more frequently, it seems) I make a solemn vow to do better at taking care of myself and being a support and example to my friends.  Yet it is so hard to sustain that resolution.  Then, along comes this book (yes, first make time to read yet another self-help book) called "Well Designed Life -- 10 Lessons in Brain Science and Design Thinking for a Mindful, Healthy, and Purposeful Life" by Kyra Bobbinet, MD MPH  It's brilliant!  Full of science-y information on how our brains work to sabotage our efforts and how to override that default.  Full of practical baby steps ideas for being successful in achieving our goals.  And a paradigm shift in thinking that affirms that no new behavior can take hold overnight -- she says it may take up to ONE YEAR to make a new habit sort of automatic (throwing out that old "3 weeks to a new you" trope) but still there will be an inner struggle, maybe forever, and you just get better at winning.

I've just sat here and made yet another list of the "things I should do to be healthier in mind and body".  I'm going to have that list beside me when I re-read Well Designed Life.  I will prioritize the list and "iterate" my way forward with maybe the top three self-improvement strategies.  (Sorry, flossing, but I'm already paying a hygienist to take care of that.)  The whole idea of "iterating" is so great.  She says you can't do it all in one fell swoop; but you can make a plan and then tweak the plan as you go to make it more realistic and doable.  You "iterate"just like a designer for consumer products -- each design improvement theoretically moves closer to an ideal until you finally have something that actually works for most of the people most of the time.  Iterating!  (I think I also like staying that word.)

I'm going to stand up now and close my laptop, walk to the kitchen and pour a big glass of water, head out to the garden and pull some weeds and ignore everything else cuz I've got crafting to do!  But hey!  I just iterated myself into walking away from the computer, drinking at least one glass of water, and getting one "to do" thing off the list!  I friggin' rock at this!

At least, that's the view from here...©