Are you indulging in easy?

GTD® wisdom from David Allen on giving yourself the gift of easy and unplanned

Things being simple and easy is not easy, for most of us.

The structure of planning what to do and working within structure can be stressful, if not stifling, unless it’s balanced with the unplanned and unstructured.

I relish those spontaneous times when I decide to stroll with my wife and dog through the park near our home in Amsterdam. Or when I take time to read a novel for fun. Or when I stop for a lovely glass of wine along an outdoor cafe along the canal because it seems like the thing to do. How about just taking time to take time?

Ah, the infinite moments to enjoy, presented to us on the conveyor belt of our existence….

There are times when making no sense makes sense. Just being, hanging out, following the whim, the momentary inclination. How long can you indulge yourself, though, purely, without hesitation, doubt, or a troubled thought about what it should be troubled about…?

Stop! Do something else. Do nothing. Try it. Anything. It’s not about our doing. We merely do to be about what we’re really about. But what we’re really about is about much more than any of that. And much more fun. We have to give up our boundaries to reach into the real priorities.

–David Allen

 

This article appeared in David’s monthly Productive Living newsletter. Subscribe for free.