Different people work differently. I work from lists. I got this from my mother. Without my lists, I would be lost. I have lists with check boxes, I have lists on paper, I have lists in emails, but be assured, if I want to make sure it gets done, it's going to have to be on a list.
On the one hand, lists are great. They're ways to keep track of things without forgetting them. They're great over time and they're great across people and situations. But lists can be a crutch. I firmly believe I rely on lists so much as an adult because I never developed the ability to make mental note of a list of things. Expect met to remember more than two items? I'll probably forget at least one item on the list. Or, more likely, I'll forget I had things to get done at all. So lists are good, but lists can be a handicap.
For someone who likes lists, checking things off the list can be rewarding. Say I have twenty things to pack for the trip to Disney for the children. Ha ha ha, okay, that was funny. Twenty things, how ridiculous. Let's start again. Let's say I have seventy things on a list that need to be packed for the trip to Florida—that's more like it, right?—I usually print out the list so I can mark off the completed items as I go.
I like checking off items. This is a known phenomenon. If you're taking a personality test, a question along the lines of, "do you like to make lists just so you can check off items?" will likely be on it. I don't like to make lists just to check things off, I like to make lists because I'm worried I'll forget something. But even so, I still like checking things off.
Speaking of Florida and Disney, my husband and I have been packing and preparing for days. Guess who had a list all made up and printed out? This list sat on the counter and as I got things done, I checked them off. I was making good progress too. Of those seventy things, I had over fifty of them accomplished. But there was one nagging item my husband had said he'd do and it just sat there, not being done, not being checked off.
It was an easy thing. Write a check for the cleaning lady who will be coming while we're traveling. It felt like days went by—it wasn't that long—and that item was still on the list, not checked off. I mentioned it to my husband and he said, of course, he was going to get that done, not a problem. But later that day the item still wasn't checked off.
My husband works in a different mode than I do. He doesn't NEED to have that item checked off on the list because he knows he'll get it done and he's not worried about it. In my crippled, list-dependent state, I wanted to see that item checked off. And here's the crazy thing, I wanted to see it checked off so badly that I was almost willing to write a check for the cleaning, even though it was his turn, just so I could mark it complete.
Lists are great. But don't let your lists control you. Take my advice on this point.
The Big Boy Update: Popo. What is a popo? He's been saying this for a while, but we didn't understand what he meant until tonight. We're on vacation and he was in his crib and he kept asking for "popo." Finally, daddy realized he was pointing to the big pink pillow on the twin bed. He gave him the pillow and my son's eyes got huge and he grinned and lay down hugging the "popo" and went to sleep.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: The pen is back. The child pen, in the basement, that blocks the baby in the closet that we call, "The Harry Potter Closet" because it's under the stairs. The pen sticks way out into the room, but it keeps her in the realm of closet toys and also keeps her away from those stairs she's so keen on climbing lately. We're taking the pen to Florida because I hear there are stairs in the rental house.
Fitness Update: Around the house. I downloaded a pedometer app today while I was packing for the trip to see how far I walked. 6727 steps as I complete this post. Estimate distance of 3.2 miles. In the house? I knew I got around, but wow.
Someone Once Said: The ability of the human mind to rationalize its deeds—and misdeeds—cannot be measured.
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