On A Mission

I have heard that most people overestimate what they can achieve in a year and underestimate what they can accomplish in five years. Every day is an opportunity to create a clean slate for attacking a number of tasks that ladder up to achieving larger goals that fit within an organization’s purpose.

After briefly looking at a few project management options including Trello and Monday.com I decided to try out Asana, which is a flexible form of web-based project management that batches assignments into two-to-four-week deliverables, with the flexibility to iterate and reflect. Work is organized into three large buckets: To Do, Doing and Done.

To kick the wheels of the Asana software, I went through Modules 4 – 7 of the ICM 501 class and mapped out key tasks, assigned dates and tested out how to move tasks around and organize the items from week four that I have already done into the “Done” pile. I also tried creating a new status option called “Completed” because finishing something is part of the reward for putting a project plan together in the first place.

Everyone has their own preference for viewing projects and for me something like the following view is a helpful reference point so I can tackle the most urgent first. I also like that Asana lets you share project plans with other people so the deadlines and overall prioritization can be agreed up front, and then renegotiated to navigate new developments, changing priorities and unforeseen roadblocks.

I also see that Asana works with Gmail, Microsoft Outlook and even SalesForce. It looks like you can add tasks straight from the software to your calendar which is an awesome feature.

Some of the most organized people I know spend time every day on their to-do’s, constantly reorganizing what they plan to do. Project Management Software like Asana creates a clean visual view of a project not only for the team working on an assignment, but for others in an organization who want to understand the work going on within a department and who is doing what kind of assignments. It has been many years since I read David Allen’s book, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity (2001) where he stresses knowing the next thing to do.

Being organized and sharing what you are working on others with others builds understanding if everyone is committed to using it as a way to keep the ball moving forward. 

Allen, D. T. (2001). Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity.

The focus of Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention–and How to Think Deeply Again (Hari, 2023) is the double-edge sword of technology’s benefits and how Western societies have tipped the balance to the point of constant overwhelm and distraction. Stolen Focus highlights the way Silicon Valley is geared to steal mindshare, to the point of unhealthy manipulation in the name of profit.

Capabilities like websites infinite scrolling and Snapchat streaks became the advancements that consumer engagement technologists chased while banning their own offspring from the very programs they designed.

In Jay Shetty’s book, Think Like A Monk (2020) he shares the wisdom gained from his multi-year sabbatical living with monks in contrast to Western lifestyles where technology feeds our brains with a steady dopamine hit as we bounce from scrolling news feeds, YouTube videos and seemingly endless streams of social media.

Shetty shares a story about taking a shower in India, which involved a muddy trek in flip flops to find a creaky outdoor stall where he couldn’t distinguish between the cold water falling from the overhead shower and the rain that had begun. The benefit of this primitive and uncomfortable situation in his estimation was that it “strengthened his resolve”.

“True growth requires understanding the mind. It is the filter, judge, and director of all our experiences, but, as evidenced by the conflict I felt on my shower adventure, we are not always of one mind.” (2020)

Once we quell any external distractions and discomforts, we can turn our attention to our internal thought processes. Oprah Winfrey refers to these as the “quiet whispers” that point you in the right direction. Activities may include:

• Keeping a diary as a way to empty the mind on paper with either things you are grateful for or things that are bothering you.

• “Single-tasking” like reading, painting, walking or meditation – anything that is immersive where we lose track of time.

If I have an hour to take care of my health, I prefer to go to the gym than sit quietly and meditate. I took a class many years’ ago where the instructor sounded a Tibetan singing bowl and we sat there in silence for an hour, which felt like an eternity.

In the Sanskrit language of Hindu philosophy, the term for a monk is brahmacharya, which means ‘the right use of energy’ (2020). While four hours of daily meditation is unlikely for most, we are beginning to wake up to the intellectual, emotional and social costs of hours lost in ‘technology space’.

It has been said that the best gift you can give someone is your attention. I believe this to be true. As someone who likes to contemplate, I’ve begun to realize just how much I’ve missed the mark by falling in and out of my own thoughts and the hubbub of the world around.

From what I’ve read, human brains are like lava lamps, producing squishy jellyfish-like thoughts every second or two. What do we have to go with the chicken for dinner? What gift should I buy my mom for her birthday? What color should I paint the living room, and so on.

In Johann Hari’s Guardian article[1] he shares a story from the introduction to his latest book, Stolen Focus. Why You Can’t Pay Attention – and How to Think Deeply Again.[2] The author espouses that human attention is diminishing because of the ever-increasing demands of technology. So, when the author takes his godson to Graceland on a trip under the stipulation that he doesn’t bring his phone and then finds him on Snapchat, there is a poignant moment where the Godson acknowledges there is a problem, then goes right back to texting.

This sounds more like the definition of insanity.

In my home I bought a small wooden box engraved with quippy sayings like, “Talking is the new texting,” “High-Speed connecting, no Wifi required.” Everyone was supposed to put their phone in there during dinner, but mostly I’m just happy if the phone is in the pocket during dinner.

Technology can be likened to other forms of addiction, with all of the same seductive powers and equally damaging side-affects that can destroy a precious commodity: our minds.

In Hari’s book, Professor Earl Miller from MIT referred to the effect of task-switching as “a perfect storm of cognitive degradation.” We know attention spans are shortening across the board thanks to the 24-hour news cycle and there is a plethora of digital channels to splinter our attention. PhD Amishi Jha wrote a book called Peak Mind[3] where she shares the benefits of meditation on strengthening our attention. She prescribes twelve minutes of meditation a day, running extensive research on its long-term benefits for strengthening focus and improving receptivity. Using the metaphors of a flashlight for finding focus and birds for improving receptivity, the author describes the changes that take place in the brain after several weeks of regular meditative practice.

I love the section in the article where Hari slows down and gets a better sense for how he is feeling, describing a “gurgling inside,” which he realizes is a sense of calm.

Finding places and spaces to decompress is critical and I very much relate to Hari’s description of his time at the Cape. So many writers and artists find inspiration in nature. For me, I have found that everything opens up when I’m in a natural habitat, including my ability to think more expansively. Providing I can put down my phone for long enough.

[1] Hari, Johann, Your attention didn’t collapse. It was stolen. The Guardian.

[2] Hari, Johann, Stolen Focus. Why You Can’t Pay Attention – and How to Think Deeply Again, 2023 Crown Trade Paperback.

[3] Jha, Amishi P. PhD, Peak Mind, Find Your Focus, Own Your Attention, Invest 12 Minutes A Day, 2021

While visiting the home show in downtown Hartford earlier in January my friend and I stopped to talk to a local green energy company about solar panels. Instantly, the salesman pulled up my friend’s house on google maps, pointed out her West-facing roof (a good thing) and in no time we were debating the pros and cons of solar energy.

One of his biggest arguments for solar was that “energy prices in Connecticut doubled”, effective Jan. 1. Turns out that two well-known utility companies are doubling their supply rates, pushing up the cost by approximately 40% more than last winter.

I called a friend who lives in New Hartford that installed solar panels a few years ago, to find out how it was working out.

“We did it because we wanted to do our bit for the environment and not be so dependent on the electric companies,” said Delia Thomas. “Solar panels have saved us a tremendous amount of money.”

To alleviate the large upfront expense of buying the panels, solar companies now offer leasing options or loans, much like financing a new car. And the newest renewable energy contracts allow residents to sell their unused solar power back to their utility company, at a fixed rate.  

Offshore Wind Farms is another innovation expanding around New England, with new developments like Revolution Wind. Anticipated to be fully operational in 2025, this promises to make enough clean energy for more than 350,000 homes in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

I’m familiar with wind farms from my trips to the UK, where imposing turbines loom over the green landscapes. It’s worth it to stand and watch those blades turning slowing, extracting energy so gracefully as a show of human ingenuity. Hornsea One, sits offshore on the East Ridings coastline powering 1 million homes in the area. A bit further down the coastline at Fraisthorpe beach where the above photo was taken, lies a land-based wind farm, which generates power for 23,000 homes in the area.

Back in Connecticut, there are aggressive goals for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and plans to grow the renewable energy market. According to an NBC review of Connecticut’s energy sources in June 2022, the Millstone Nuclear Power Plant in Waterford generates a whopping 38% of the state’s power.

Despite all the promise of renewables, solar generates only 2% and wind only 1% of Connecticut’s energy, so we’re poised for growth. While green energy may not be top of mind for many residents, there are many incentives that make renewables worth a second look.