You know those small little questions you ask yourself? The ones that seem to just wander across your consciousness and you may not even think there’s answer? or your level of investment to find the answer is in the range of 0-2 on a scale of needing the answer? Or you recognize it as a question that revisits you every now and then I you think “Hmmm, I wonder why that thought keeps passing by?” 

Well, I think that God takes them seriously. 

Here’s a very recent example. If you read the last blog post you know I was having issues with my creative space. There was more to it, so here is a little back story.

Well, it might be a lot of back story….

I found a paper on the corner of my desk and  assumed it was a list of ideas for blog posts—yes, I think about that —and when I looked closer they were notes about how God takes our questions seriously. With two  “eg’s” to illustrate what I meant. 

More back story (dont’ say I didn’t warn you!) I have known for a long time that my brain produces a zillion more ideas than I can possible hope to see the light of day. The thought of running out and the fear that the great idea I just had might be the very last one I ever have is totally laughable. 

Having a lot of ideas is a burden. It totally gets in the way of productivity.

I have been working on productivity issues for a long time now: I have listened to podcasts, read books, watched webinars and followed every rabbit trail to try to get myself to be less of a procrastinator and more of a producer. 

On top of that I am a list maker—I specialize in making lists and I do not even pay attention to many of the items on the list. (Read this next bit in a whispery voice) Here is true confession—I get off track and later add the things I did do to be able to check them off!!!

I feel better now that’s out.

Many of the guidelines from productivity gurus have made sense to me: 

  • To see the year in chunks like 4 quarters.  
  • To focus on three big things each quarter. 
  • Break down the big projects into small do-able tasks. 
  • A schedule does not mean you have to do all things every day
  • Find a rhythm to getting things done
  • Have a clear outcome and a deadline 
  • Learn to prioritize
  • Show up
  • Divide the day into chunks of time
  • Things take a lot longer to finish than you think it will
  • If I don’t have clear goals, someone else will make them for me (bummer)
  • Do the hardest things first every day

(Note: I still struggle with taking my own deadlines as seriously as those imposed by someone who is not me)

Now I for eg #1 ( see above):

I find the idea of three goals per quarter super helpful… but I ran into a snag. When I made my list of tasks, they were not things I could just do and tick off the list. I kept finding that my “tasks” were actually “projects” within my goals. It seemed to me that other people had no issues with promptly making a list of tasks. At least that is what it looked like to me. 

So here was my question: how do people come up with a list of tasks for large projects? Then, how can I come up with a list of tasks? (that would lead to the accomplishment of a large goal)

Why I think my brain is dirt…. 

I believe when I personalized the question God took me seriously. And an idea just dropped into my head that might work. It was a seed. My brain was dirt and the seed started to grow and use the nutrients of past experience to show me times I had used mind-mapping to come to terms with a big plan broken down into segments.

I used to do it for my classes so I could get a big picture of what skills and knowledge I wanted the students to learn. Once an administrator “caught me in the act” and actually asked to use it to share with other teachers. I was embarassed because it took only ten minutes, and I did not think of it as any big thing. She seemed to think it was amazing. In my mind it was a time saver and fast way to get down some of those hundred ideas in a visible form that showed relationships and made sense to me. 

And now eg #2:

I’m repeating myself because I did mention this in the recent blog, but now it is in a new context. I was stumped about how to maximize my work space for multiple uses, which each used a different set or collection of tools and supplies. And not accumulate clutter.

Another seed was dropped into my brain. Rotation! 

How silly was I to think that it was a big deal to move the supplies I needed?  I knew they were in the garage and all I had to do was cart them up, and take them down when I finished. How many times a day did I go up and down those stairs every day? The benefit of rotation would keep me focused on each project.

Here’s the truth: I don’t take much credit for the ideas that pop into my head. My brain is dirt. God plants the seeds and I only water them.