Chop Wood, Carry Water

Valuing the Mundane

Are you so focused on being productive that you are missing out on the reflection that occurs while you engage in repetitive tasks? Are you squashing in your 10 minute meditation and making sure you put all your forks in one section of the dishwasher basket to ‘save time’ when you put them away?

I have a friend who makes sure she uses the rest intervals when doing weights, by inserting calf raises to not ‘waste time’.

The value of repetitive mundane tasks is something I’ve been contemplating for some time, but it wasn’t till I had a friend stay with me for a week who is highly efficient, works from the time she gets up, till the time she goes to bed and thinks that 6 hours sleep/night is about right that I begin to get some ideas about how to explain the concept I call “Chop Wood, Carry Water” and the ultimate ‘wake up’ to me was the one occasion she walked out the door with her open laptop just so she could get more done while her daughter drove her to an appointment. In the same week, at another friends Birthday, that was a picnic in the park, bring your own everything, I had the conversation about ‘batching’ jobs and bunching like cutlery together to be more productive!!

Btw, it was fabulous spending 3 hours outdoors, with nothing to do but enjoy being in the sun, munching and drinking, and having random conversations.

I willingly admit I’m not the most productive person I know. I thrive on downtime, a long walk in nature, be it through the bush, along the beach or up hill and down dale is for me a great way to leave everyday stresses behind and just be in the moment. If the weather isn’t the greatest, I’ll happily curl up with a good book (fiction), and a hot chocolate or a glass of red, while some chocolate or cheese to nibble on is a bonus.

When I take time away from the issues, and let go, that’s when I get insights into situations that my logical brain hasn’t been able to sort out.

It’s in these moments of not being focused on productivity that I mull over events, situations, people, places that I’ve interacted with, not consciously at the forefront of my mind but below the surface, ideas and connections are percolating away while my conscious mind is ambling along enjoying the scenery or becoming engrossed in the story. This is when I gain insights into situations and gain ideas on how to move forward in situations that on the surface don’t appear to have solutions.

What helps is having lots of stimulus to generate left of field ideas, conversations, books, attending random events. In my 30’s I decided my life was rather unexciting and made a decision to do something about it, that decision was not to wait to do something but to start doing stuff to see if I enjoyed it or not. To stop saying ‘No’ to opportunities and start saying ‘Yes!’ To get out and get involved, not sit back and wait for the right thing to come along. To give something a go first and then decide if I wanted to do more or not. This has lead to me giving lots of things a go and discovering that among other things I enjoy activities that challenge me physically.

Climbing Mt Warning was one of the things I did to challenge myself, to see if I could do it.

Walking into a room full of people where I don’t know anyone is another. My secret:

1. Look for someone or a couple on their own and ask them how they heard about the event or what brought them there, and

2. Listen to what they have to say, always try to introduce that person to someone else before moving on.

3. I’ve also found that a Black Sparkly Jacket or other signature item such as a piece of jewellery is a good way to get noticed and have people approach you to chat.

4. A bight smile, hold your hand out and say I’m “Your Name” also helps open a conversation.

My point is productivity is not always about getting the most stuff done, it’s about giving the mind space (and inputs) to come up with extraordinary ideas, finding a better way, instead of saying No, that’s difficult, I’ve never done that before and thinking you have to have all the answers before yiou start, sometimes you just need to take one step, and then another and trust.

You’ve seen the quote about moving forward beyond the edge of the cliff, one of two things will happen—firm support will appear under your feet, or you will sprout wings and fly. Always have hope that everything will turn out alright in the end, and faith that there is a higher power at work who can see the whole picture while we see only a portion.

What’s this got to do with Chop Wood and Carry Water? Those seemingly endless mindless activities allow the mind, your mind, space for ideas to manifest and come up with ideas and solutions that there’s no room for, when you are focused on being productive in every moment.

Not saying it’s for everyone, but are you feeling guilty because you don’t fit that mould, that for you being productive every minute is exhausting? (I feel you.) Then seek solace in the moments where your conscious productive brain is switched off and improve your quality of life and your contribution to humanity by doing less rather than more.

By the way, I find the forks (and spoons) bunch together and don’t clean properly when they all go in the same cubicle so I spread them out and sort them as I stand at the draw putting them away.