How To Succeed in Busyness --- Day 178

Walk: R/T Rim and Goggles, Mindful Body
Distance: 3 Miles and teach class

Interesting combination of topics I encountered today:

The first was from Forbes.com about Really, Successful, REALLY BUSY People.  Here's a small quote:

But according to author Laura Vanderkam, author of the e-book, “What The Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast,” there’s hope for us yet. Vanderkam, who became fascinated by time management while penning her last book, “168 Hours,” says that in the course of researching dozens of people on how they spend their precious minutes, the most successful people were those who devoted chunks of time in the morning to things (or people) that they loved. From Ursula Burns to Anna Wintour to Al Sharpton, a common thread of successful people is their commitment to early morning activities.

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“These are busy people, productive people,” she says. “But mostly they are people who had figured out that if you wanted something to happen, it was important to have it happen first thing.” Not all of them would call themselves morning people, either, but they knew that the hours before their phones started ringing and the emails came pouring in were the few hours of each day over which they had complete control. And with that in mind, they set about creating new habits.

The second was on NY Times.com by Tim Kreider entitled 'The Busy Trap' (published in a section called 'Anxiety).  Here's a couple of quotes from it.

If you live in America in the 21st century you’ve probably had to listen to a lot of people tell you how busy they are. It’s become the default response when you ask anyone how they’re doing: “Busy!” “So busy.” “Crazy busy.” It is, pretty obviously, a boast disguised as a complaint. And the stock response is a kind of congratulation: “That’s a good problem to have,” or “Better than the opposite.”

It’s not as if any of us wants to live like this; it’s something we collectively force one another to do.  (side bar)

Notice it isn’t generally people pulling back-to-back shifts in the I.C.U. or commuting by bus to three minimum-wage jobs who tell you how busy they are; what those people are is not busy but tired. Exhausted. Dead on their feet. It’s almost always people whose lamented busyness is purely self-imposed: work and obligations they’ve taken on voluntarily, classes and activities they’ve “encouraged” their kids to participate in. They’re busy because of their own ambition or drive or anxiety, because they’re addicted to busyness and dread what they might have to face in its absence.

...Idleness is not just a vacation, an indulgence or a vice; it is as indispensable to the brain as vitamin D is to the body, and deprived of it we suffer a mental affliction as disfiguring as rickets. The space and quiet that idleness provides is a necessary condition for standing back from life and seeing it whole, for making unexpected connections and waiting for the wild summer lightning strikes of inspiration — it is, paradoxically, necessary to getting any work done. “Idle dreaming is often of the essence of what we do,” wrote Thomas Pynchon in his essay on sloth. Archimedes’ “Eureka” in the bath, Newton’s apple, Jekyll & Hyde and the benzene ring: history is full of stories of inspirations that come in idle moments and dreams. It almost makes you wonder whether loafers, goldbricks and no-.accounts aren’t responsible for more of the world’s great ideas, inventions and masterpieces than the hardworking..

Personally, I resonate with that last paragraph by Kreider.  Instead of teaching ourselves (read: Forcing Ourselves) to be morning (read Busy) people, I'm personally inclined toward encouraging people who are not inclined to by Busy to listen to their inner voices about why.  Maybe they would truly prefer to be less busy, to have more 'idle' time - more space and quiet for inspiration or just for being themselves.  This of course could be - and has been - the subject of extensive writing, so I will leave it here for today.

Getting to Jeopardy ---Day 177

Walk:(2) R/T Mindful Body+
Distance: 2 miles and teach 4 times

Four classes/privates much easier with no baseball game or (fraudulent) introductory date afterwards.  Think I'll veg with Alex and Callie after a busy week.  Poor Alex had a minor heart attack (his second).  I'd like to get to L.A. for a taping of Jeopardy before he leaves the show, but right now new shows are on hiatus for the summer and they aren't taking fall audience reservations yet.  It's one of those things I keep forgetting to do, and this fall may be one of the last opportunities because Alex talked of quitting soon/in a couple of years before this last medical scare. 

San Francisco Chronicle (blog)

1. Alex Trebek: My Heart Attack Had My Wife in Tears with Worry
   

   
   

   People Magazine‎ - 4 days ago

Hold the Dopamine Please* --- Day 176

Walk: Too grey, windy and cold
Distance: Home Yoga and short weights practice

The following is something we're probably all aware of by now, but I just re-encountered it online and thought I'd post it. It is 10 Myths about Introverts from CarlKingdom.com. (*There's some evidence that introverts are over sensitive to dopamine, so too much external stimulation overdoses and exhausts them - with the opposite being true of extroverts who thrive on it).

Myth #1 – Introverts don’t like to talk.
This is not true. Introverts just don’t talk unless they have something to say. They hate small talk. Get an introvert talking about something they are interested in, and they won’t shut up for days.
Myth #2 – Introverts are shy.
Shyness has nothing to do with being an Introvert. Introverts are not necessarily afraid of people. What they need is a reason to interact. They don’t interact for the sake of interacting. If you want to talk to an Introvert, just start talking. Don’t worry about being polite.
Myth #3 – Introverts are rude.
Introverts often don’t see a reason for beating around the bush with social pleasantries. They want everyone to just be real and honest. Unfortunately, this is not acceptable in most settings, so Introverts can feel a lot of pressure to fit in, which they find exhausting.
Myth #4 – Introverts don’t like people.
On the contrary, Introverts intensely value the few friends they have. They can count their close friends on one hand. If you are lucky enough for an introvert to consider you a friend, you probably have a loyal ally for life. Once you have earned their respect as being a person of substance, you’re in.
Myth #5 – Introverts don’t like to go out in public.
Nonsense. Introverts just don’t like to go out in public FOR AS LONG. They also like to avoid the complications that are involved in public activities. They take in data and experiences very quickly, and as a result, don’t need to be there for long to “get it.” They’re ready to go home, recharge, and process it all. In fact, recharging is absolutely crucial for Introverts.
Myth #6 – Introverts always want to be alone.
Introverts are perfectly comfortable with their own thoughts. They think a lot. They daydream. They like to have problems to work on, puzzles to solve. But they can also get incredibly lonely if they don’t have anyone to share their discoveries with. They crave an authentic and sincere connection with ONE PERSON at a time.
Myth #7 – Introverts are weird.
Introverts are often individualists. They don’t follow the crowd. They’d prefer to be valued for their novel ways of living. They think for themselves and because of that, they often challenge the norm. They don’t make most decisions based on what is popular or trendy.
Myth #8 – Introverts are aloof nerds.
Introverts are people who primarily look inward, paying close attention to their thoughts and emotions. It’s not that they are incapable of paying attention to what is going on around them, it’s just that their inner world is much more stimulating and rewarding to them.
Myth #9 – Introverts don’t know how to relax and have fun.
Introverts typically relax at home or in nature, not in busy public places. Introverts are not thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies. If there is too much talking and noise going on, they shut down. Their brains are too sensitive to the neurotransmitter called Dopamine. Introverts and Extroverts have different dominant neuro-pathways. Just look it up.
Myth #10 – Introverts can fix themselves and become Extroverts.
A world without Introverts would be a world with few scientists, musicians, artists, poets, filmmakers, doctors, mathematicians, writers, and philosophers. That being said, there are still plenty of techniques an Extrovert can learn in order to interact with Introverts. (Yes, I reversed these two terms on purpose to show you how biased our society is.) Introverts cannot “fix themselves” and deserve respect for their natural temperament and contributions to the human race. In fact, one study (Silverman, 1986) showed that the percentage of Introverts increases with IQ.**   **CIWT Note: I never like (or  particularly believe) these self-congratulatory definitions. 

 

Empty Plus Intrigue Day 175

Walk: R/T Mindful Body, Trader Joe's
Distance: 3 Miles and Teach





Did I tell you about at least one of the Table 'dates' probably being a (paid) regular used by Table?  There's been a consistent empty quality to the very polite conversations and 'events' I've had with my Table introductions that didn't square with how you'd converse with someone you were meeting in order to either date or see if you had any friendship/acquaintance future. So I began asking these men how it was going with Table, why they had joined and got sort of vapidly plausible responses.

But then my baseball game 'date' responded 'Huh?' at the end of the evening over drinks when I asked why he'd joined an introduction service.  "Ah Ha!" I thought.  So, I pursued, "You know, what kind of woman are you looking to meet?"  "Looking to meet?!  I don't understand.  I'm not looking to meet anyone."  Me, staring.  Him after pause "They call me..."  You get the picture.  Then he kind of covered "I like people; I like to meet people..."  Yes, that seemed very true; he's a total man about town, knows everyone, goes everywhere.  But someone who is essentially a professional escort possibly paid by the service is not who I or any woman is paying an introduction service to meet.  As I said, I got a similar feeling about my first introduction, and who knows what was going on with introduction 3.

So, I'm guessing we're looking at fraud - by Table and possibly by the 'introductions' who may be somehow compensated by Table.  Personally we're also looking at an insulting, empty (at best) experience.

Yoga Teacher Restorative -- Day 174

Walk: Nope
Distance: Mental

I think the extra 5 classes I'm teaching (along with the famous Table experience) finally caught up today.  I just  found a website I hope will be promising which focusses on burnout for yoga teachers. People in the helping professions (psychologists, ministers, doctors for sure, etc) have their own type of burnout much of it related to depleting their resources on behalf of others and not having many/any communal places to go for self-renewal.  (There is only so much recharging the Bible or other religious texts can offer. Same with medical texts and Dr. Freud). 

The thing that may be unique to yoga teachers is physical/body depletion/exhaustion.  We use our bodies (more then we realize) in their entirety to teach, even mentally to duplicate routines or poses or deeply 'channel' students, and then to do the necessary movements of life (laundry, gardening, shopping, and for many, children and family - life).  Like the other helping professions, we absorb a lot of negative energy from our students - after all, we are there to help them surface and release the resistances that are stored within.

It is all very rewarding, fascinating, 'transporting' with a life of its own.  But some days you can hit a wall all of your own. It's subtle and hard to 'own' because we yoga teachers live in 'caregiver heaven' compared with many others.  But I'm learning after many years of teaching, it can be complete. There really isn't a community place you can go; maybe this website will be edifying, but ultimately you/I surrender to the depletion and hope renewal/growth/the next planet is around the corner.

Remember Flakey? Day 173

Walk: R/T Fillmore, Urban Outfitters
Distance: 2 miles and teach private



After talking with me on and off all day, insisting I keep in touch so she absolutely knew for sure I'd show up at the venue to buy her Furthur ticket, I called one more time just before getting there.  Her reply: "Oh, I was just about to call you.  (me: I'll bet) I don't have the ticket. Long pause..My friend said she wasn't going to use it, but now she is."  Read: I got to the venue, and sold it for more than I posted on Craigslist and we agreed on. 

Furthurmore, More Furthur --- Day 172

Walk:  R/T car Arboretum Tour
Distance: 3.5 Miles

Kind of lived on Craigslist and looks like a ticket for Furthur did come through and I was first to respond!  I'll drive over to the venue, meet the person with one (1!) ticket and a hundred takers, 'do the deal,' and then..

Furthur



At Terrapin Crossroads


For the First Time  --   Ever!!

And it's 15 miles away in a venue owned by Phil Lesh where the stage is no more than 50 feet at most away - closer if I'm lucky.  Wow; Not quite time to return to comfort zone after all.  This is very big.

7th Inning Stretch --- Day 171

Walk: R/T Mindful Body, Sutter-Stockton Garage
Distance: 1 mile and teach

No more 'relationship candidates' to meet, just a couple of yoga classes to teach before Monday.  It will be nice to return to my comfort zone for a while....