The Minefield (a.k.a. Your To-Do List)
When we wake up, we have two ways to approach our daily responsibilities.
- Proactively
- Reactively
I like to picture my day’s to-do list as a minefield. I can either sludge through it, fearing the result of each attempt to diffuse an item on the list. (One wrong step… KABOOM). Or, I can zero in on each task, proactively accomplish it, and move steadily on to the next. All the while staying alert for any surprises that come my way.
Imagine you wake up an hour later than you intended. If you’re like me, the temptation is to immediately step into each task in reactive mode. Eventually your whole day becomes a shrapnel shower. “I’m just a few steps behind today,” you might say to a colleague or spouse. This is a widely accepted response, but what if we didn’t settle for reactivity?
The reality is, no matter when we wake up, or how busy our day is, we have the choice to proactively accomplish the things laid out before us. When we approach our responsibilities this way, it will dramatically increase our ability to handle whatever twists and turns life inevitably throws at us.
Be proactive. Conquer the minefield.
