I’ll Remember?
When we say to ourselves “I’ll remember” the honest words that should follow are “maybe” or “probably not.” And at what cost, remembering?
I just read David Allen’s (Davidco.com) recent newsletter in which he challenges the practice of capturing all we agree to do, regularly reviewing the systems and doing it all 100%. It was a call to action. Either do it 100% or stop pretending it is being done. Bless you, David!
I looked at my systems and found one seemingly unimportant thing that happened Thanksgiving Day. I watched myself pretend that I would remember to pick up my empty dishes after the pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce I brought were eaten. I didn’t even consider writing it down because how could I forget them? I suppose my dishes could have ended up in their cabinets for months, but that was not the issue. I was not willing to play at 100% and keep my mind clear by writing it down. I was willing to let those dishes float around in my brain pulling on my memory. And I put the responsibility on my friend to track my stuff. So eventually I wrote it down.
Why would we want to give any details to our brain to remember and then get upset later when our overloaded brains can’t remember or remind us? And why would we delegate our responsibility to a friend or colleague when we are 100% responsible for what we say we will do? I love being reminded that whatever we keep in our heads, no matter how small, drains our energy and attention.
The fun part is that the bonus of being willing to write things down often means the doing can happen even without you doing anything. The pie plate and bowl magically appeared at my house this morning without a phone call, text or any kind of request.
I am grateful for my commitment to taking 100% responsibility, sacrificing the “I’ll remembers” for written down actions.That is freedom!
Martha Invitations
1. The next time something floats through your mind to do grab it and write it down.
2. When you hear yourself say “I’ll remember,” immediately follow it with NOT. Then write it down.
3. If you loan anything to someone, track it. Martha