Be Extraordinary: Do One Thing at a Time.

Today I am going to do one thing at a time.  I will start the day by going over my plan for the day.

Then I will work with one computer program until the project is finished. When I have finished that one project, I am going to take a break and do some crunches.

Then I will return to my computer and work with one computer program. When that project is finished I am going to go outside and walk two miles.

Then I will eat some fruit.  I will not turn on the television.  I will not sit at my desk.  I will sit at my table and eat slowly.  I will taste each single bite of the fruit.

Then I will work make phone calls. I will call the people on my schedule.  I will focus on each call. I will be present for the moment of my time of conversation with that person.

Then I will take a break and step outside to look around.  I will think about what I see.  I will not judge what I see.  I will think about the colors and the lines and shapes.  I may take out a ladder and pull some things from my gutters.  I may just appreciate my surroundings.  There is no plan for this break in the day.

Then I will have lunch, a short but slow lunch.  I will think about my food and appreciate the fact that I have that food to eat.

Then I will return to my computer.  I will read and reply to my email. I will read each email once and make sure that I understand the action I am to take on that email. Then I will complete the action on that email and not return to it.

Then I will sit on the sofa.  I will take a mental break. By now I will feel tired and anxious from the fatigue. What I know is that if I close my eyes for twenty minutes, I will be refreshed and the fatigue and anxiety will have disappeared.
I will return to my desk and begin to review my progress on the list of things to do today.   I will work on those things to finish the day.  I will do them one at a time.

As the day goes on, my mind may wander.  Sometimes my mind is ready to be some place else. My mind may start watching the clock the way it did when it would focus on watching the last two minutes of the clock tick off the big clock above the blackboard at the end of the school day.

As I approach each task, I will take a deep breath the way a major league baseball player takes a deep breath before stepping into the batter’s box or before making the next pitch.  A deep breath brings focus.  I will need focus by the end of the day.

I will stop my work for time with my family.  I will sit in the room with them and listen to them about their day. I have listened to my own thoughts all day. It will be refreshing to hear some else’s thoughts.

After dinner I will return to my desk for about an hour. I will plan my day for tomorrow, making notes on my daily schedule. Then I will spend about thirty minutes on a daily tutorial for a study course I am taking.

Then I will stop. I will reflect on the day.  I will say, “Day is done.  Close the door on today.”  Then I can sleep and be grateful that I have had a day to be productive and have learned how to approach each part of the day as a part unto itself and how to take breaks to be more effective.

I want to be extraordinary. I will do one thing at a time.