Still getting most things done!

It's now almost two months since I changed my way of working to become more organised. I now have an empty inbox at the end of almost every day (I think I missed one in the last 6 or 7 weeks that I know about) and that's pretty impressive for me. What I like is the sense that I should be able to find a home for every thought, idea, piece of paper and just about everything that comes my way on a daily basis.

What I also like is knowing that whilst this is a "work in progress", it's really paying off in the way I do things. What I still need to do is to organise my books and my files. I also need to give some close attention to the clutter of gadgets and bits that accumulate in my life. I have draws and boxes with stuff in them that needs to be processed. But here's the thing. I can schedule that task, I can reschedule that task, I can delegate it, defer, even do it. The one thing I don't have to do is let it bother me that it's undone. By regularly reviewing my action lists and projects, I can see where things like "sort out books" fits in the overall scheme of things.

The next thing I like is the sense of control. Without going into detail, I've got a list of some 60 projects in which I am involved. It was the realisation that I was trying to navigate all these projects in my head that made me realise I needed to change my habits. Now I can sit and look at the projects, I can see the connections, and I'm working out how best to negotiate my way through them all. They each get the attention they need because they have a place on a list.
There's an interesting knock-on effect too.

When I look around my environment, I see stuff that needs processing. Clutter that's just built up through busyness in church, and that is crying out for someone to deal with it. I'm not becoming obsessively tidy, but I am becoming more aware of the need to process and review what's lying around the place. And I think that's healthy.

Lastly, I'm less stressed about what I have to do. There are still times when all the demands I face seem to pile up before me, but I certainly feel as if it's more contained, less overwhelming. It's a healthier place to be.

For me, the key next step is to take this new system and create the space in my day to process everything properly and thoroughly. In other words, to give myself the time to really do what really needs to be done.

But as I said, this is a work in progress.