In April 2000, OnHealth presented an online seminar called "What's Draining You?" with Life Coach Cheryl Richardson. When I read the introductory material for this seminar, I knew it was for me. When I took the test, my score was 32%, and almost half of that was in the "Environment" section. I can't arrange my living space the way I would like, because (a) I share it with my mother, (b) we are both pack rats and both messy by nature, and (c) I tend to be a perfectionist, and if I can't do a job to my own satisfaction - like organizing my stuff - I would just as soon not do it at all.
As a result, my living space is in a perpetual state of chaos, and it is very, very draining indeed. I needed to write a fairly complex JavaScript - but where was my book? Vanished! Mom found it about three weeks later when she happened to move a rolling file cabinet slightly: the book was underneath. I needed to hammer in some carpet tacks, but my mucho macho hammer - the only one we own that is heavy - was nowhere to be found. A few days ago it turned up out in the grass, the head covered with rust. I do not remember taking it out there at all, and can't begin to guess how long it was lying there. Just yesterday, when I finally cleaned off my desk, I found a rebate check I received a good six weeks ago - that has to be cashed by July 1. And on and on and on!
It isn't just losing things and staring at a mess, either. It's my job to change the light bulbs. I hate doing it, so I tend to put it off. Pretty soon Mom is saying, "Remember when it used to be light in here?" Or I realize I have looked over at a burned-out lamp 50 times now and thought, "I've got to put a new bulb in that soon." Every time I think that, it's a drag on my energy: a drag I never needed to have at all, if I had changed the bulb the first time I thought it.
Excuse me a second - I'm going to go change that bulb in the swing-arm wall lamp, then I'll be back ...
Anyway, as you can see, the "What's Draining You?" class might have been custom-designed for me.
I missed the first and last online classes, which were chat meetings with Cheryl Richardson, but was able to read the transcripts of these sessions, so didn't miss anything. The chat meetings were much too short - only about 45 minutes - but that is my only criticism of the program.
Cheryl's ideas and tips for identifying energy drains and what to do about them were excellent. I found the class - and Cheryl - energizing and revitalizing. It was too bad that my trip, illness and injury all came one after another right after I took this online class.
But I kept some of the lessons with me all along. The biggest change so far has been in my to-do lists. My method has always been to list EVERYTHING I could think of that needed to be done, so I wouldn't forget anything ... then look over the list and get so tired I'd go take a nap. I'm not kidding!
Cheryl's method of starting out with small lists that you know you CAN accomplish was the key for me. Somewhere I have a master list, because otherwise I truly am likely to forget things - but I don't look at it every day. Instead, in the morning I remove jobs I finished yesterday from the daily list and give myself a realistic set of jobs for today.
Two other things work into this. First, when something unexpected comes up that has to be tackled right away, I add that to today's list and, when it is finished, put a big "- DONE" after it. It's an accomplishment for the day - and I give myself credit for it. Second, if I do not get some of the jobs done, I don't beat myself up over it - but I do ask why. Were there special circumstances (like the severe headache I got yesterday)? Or is it something I really don't want to do? I've noticed that the jobs that stay at the top of the list for several days are the ones that I just hate to do, or find annoying or frustrating - or boring. Those are the jobs that require one of two treatments: (1) Break the job into smaller sections, or (2) Promise myself a reward for getting it done.
I told Dr. Meyer about all this at my session, too. He called it "cognitive therapy." Whatever it is, I recommend it.
So - the combination of new meds and self-motivational techniques to eliminate energy drains is proving a winner so far. Because of my depressive condition, the "What's Draining You?" methods by themselves could not be the whole answer, but they do help.
Now that I've finished writing this article, I get to cross it off my list.
Note: Sadly, the archives of the "What's Draining You?" seminar are no longer online. However, I do recommend Cheryl Richardson's book Take Time For Your Life, except for the opening requirement that you make someone else read the book to work with you - sometimes that just won't work.
Take Time For Your Life by Cheryl Richardson - Compare Prices
