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Blogger Four:
I sat down to write this post. As you can guess, sitting did not automatically trigger great insight or imagination.
Sitting is certainly not a prerequisite for writing as most any teenager knows. I think were we to conduct a scientific survey, we would discover less than 4 in 37 people under twenty years old ever sit when writing unless required to do so in school or other similarly controlling environment. This may be an overly optimistic estimate if texting is considered to be writing.
I asked a conveniently available teen about texting and learned little about the habits of texters but was assured the Guinness record is not held by a teenager. Rather it is held by an adult (Deepak Sharma) who is definitely old enough to know better. Mr. Sharma averaged over six thousand texts a day for a month. Does “Get a life,” seem to fit here? This may not still be the record but if not, I really don’t want to know.
Since we are just chatting while I wait for an inspiration, there is also a fast texting record. Melissa Thompson of Salford, England (according to the same conveniently available teen) texted this test message in 25.94 seconds. “The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality….” The test message continues but you get the idea. She texts really really fast.
Is there anything to conclude from these two records (Deepak for prolific texting and Melissa for speed texting) we might want to file away for further thought? Actually, I doubt it but let me suggest this only as a possibility. As with texting, how much and how fast have little bearing on how well when sitting down to write a post. Readers are unlikely to care much about how many words I write and even less about how quickly I write them. At least, speed and quantity are not high on the quality criteria list.
That prompts me to wonder if there may not be an acceptable quantity/speed range for most things in our lives. Perhaps there is too much and not enough, too fast and too slow, with “good enough” in-between. We are inundated with advice and demands to do better, to strive for perfection, to reach farther, and to generally exceed whatever we are currently doing. What if for most things there is a good enough area for each of us where we can relax, feel comfortable, be satisfied with ourselves and our performance, and simply decide not to put anymore effort, energy, or emotion into it.
We can call all those activities the “Good Enough Stuff” and where we keep them our GES Box. The more we put into our GES Box, the more time, opportunity, and emotional energy we have for a few (very few) activities where getting it right the first time, on time, every time is important, actually matters to us, and will still matter a month from now, a year from now, i.e., it truly does matter.
Let’s call this our “Matters To Me Stuff” and our special place to keep it our MTM Box. This is a tiny box we can keep in our pocket so we always have it with us. It holds our personal priorities, those activities we sincerely value. It’s where we keep our valuables for frequent examination and action.
I admit to being tempted to expand on this but will follow my own advice. That’s enough for this sit.
I have two boxes labeled GES and MTM.
I am particular about what goes into them.
MTM is reserved for my very best.
GES is where I toss the rest.