Happy Sunday Friends!

Here is 1 quote I’m musing, 2 Ideas, 3 of my favorite things from the week, and 1 question. If you find it useful or interesting, please feel free to forward this along to some friends or others!

One Quote I’m Musing

“Nothing, to my way of thinking, is a better proof of a well ordered mind than a man’s ability to stop just where he is and pass some time in his own company.”

-Seneca

I’ve been (and will be for a few more weeks) in a continuous travel mode. In that, I find myself with a number of periods of dead space. It’s not enough time to really enter focus mode and crank out some deep work, but it’s more time than I was comfortable with just doing “nothing”. So here are my five things that are surprisingly productive when you have “nothing” to do.

1. Journal and Reflect

Use 15-20 minutes of your downtime to journal and reflect on how the past week has gone, your quests (goals but more fun), or any challenges you’re facing.

When reflecting, start with two things. 1) What were the wins from last week? Review the calendar and what happened, then find the things you can celebrate (even the small things). 2) What were my challenges last week? Where was I not aligned with my intentions?

This practice can help you gain clarity, process your thoughts, and track your progress over time. Writing down your reflections can also lead to new insights and ideas.

2. Plan and Prioritize

Second behind Journaling and Reflecting because these go hand in hand. When you’ve finished your thoughts and reflections on last week spend a little time curating a plan for the next week.

When planning, make sure anything that needs to be scheduled is on the calendar. Identify the tasks that need to be added to the “todo” list. Then, identify a few of the outcomes you want accomplished next week; picture the week as an awesome week and jot down those things to accomplish that would make it awesome.

Whether it's outlining your goals for the week or planning a new project, having a clear roadmap can enhance your productivity.

3. Message of Gratitude

Think about someone you feel gratitude towards. What would you say to them if they were right there in front of you to tell them how thankful you are? Got it?

GREAT! Let’s be interactive for a second.

Now get your phone out, open up your messaging app and simply type it out. You don’t have to send it, just type it out.

Seriously. Take 2 minutes and type it out; you don’t have to send it. I’m not telling you to send it, I’m not the boss of you.

Done? Good. Done.

Now go ahead and put the phone away. Send the message if you want, you’ve already done the work.

It’s totally ok if you don’t. But think about how you felt expressing the gratitude. Maybe a little awkward, maybe a little silly.

It’s something so easy to do and only takes a couple minutes to send a message to someone you value in your life.

4. Declutter Your Physical Space

While this might seem unrelated to cybersecurity and productivity, there’s a lot of work on how a tidy workspace can greatly enhance your digital productivity. We have a place for everything usually, we just get so busy it all ends up crowding our mouse and keyboard space.

Also, I’ve found, my space can reflect my mind. If I’m out of sorts and messy, just feeling “ugh”, I can take a couple minutes and just organize the space. Clean the desk, organize cables, and ensure your workspace is free of distractions. Put the trash in the trash, move my coffee mugs back to the dishwasher, put away the thirty pens and pieces of paper strewn about. When I’m done, my mind tends to reflect the decluttering/organizing I’ve just done.

Consider a digital declutter by organizing your desktop and uninstalling unnecessary applications and move your files into an organizational system (I use PARA Method).

A clean and organized workspace leads to a clean and organized mind. It can improve focus and efficiency, reducing the time spent searching for items and allowing you to work more effectively.

5. Organize and Secure Your Digital Life

Because I can’t let a good opportunity to go to waste (and I’m a cyber nerd). Downtime is perfect for improving your digital hygiene. Start by organizing your files and emails. Delete what you don’t need and back up important data. Additionally, take this time to update your passwords. Use a password manager to create strong, unique passphrases for each account, reducing the risk of cyber-attacks.

Tip: H#s35tF is impossible to remember. It’s also going to take about 4 seconds to crack nowadays. A passphrase such as IlovemycatFluffy,shewasborn12Feb2021. It’s easier to remember, way longer, and will take somewhere between 126bn and 2tn years to crack from a hash (really).

-e

Two Ideas From Me

Personal Relationship Management Software. Sales folks are familiar with CRMs. I’m familiar. They’re super useful for business. But as I get older, it’s harder to maintain relationships with people I value. I’m going to employ a PRM.
Think about it, do you remember the birthday of every person you know and their kids’ birthdays? What about each of their names? What was the last thing the friend you last talked to 6 months ago was working on? These people are valuable to me. I want to remember and/or systematize caring about them.
Quests. I like games. Pretty much every game has a storyline and quests. Quests are goals. In real life, I like this idea of calling my goals, my tasks, quests. It somehow makes them more fun. Gotta get a document for the boss? Fetch Quest. Gotta make sure someone gets to a meeting? Escort Quest. Try it out.

Three Favorite Things From Others

“If you need 10 of something, make 30. Then pick the best.” | Rick Rubin
“Change is not a bolt of lightning that arrives with a zap. It is a bridge built brick by brick, every day, with sweat and humility and slips. It is hard work, and slow work, but it can be thrilling to watch it take shape.” | Sarah Hepola
“There are non-essential activities, months of precious time, and it’s worse to take an interest in irrelevant things than to do nothing at all.” | Baltasar Gracian

One Question

Life teaches us many more things than school. What is an important life lesson that you will teach your kids? (Or the younger generation)

Have a wonderful week,

I’ll see you Sunday.
-e