Recently, I was blessed with a second grandchild—his name is Walter. Meeting a baby causes a person to reflect on life. You look at a newborn and can’t help but think about the possibilities. A baby has a clean slate, with an entire life set out before it.
It’s fun to think about the “what-ifs” in life. Will Walter love baseball like the generations before him? If not, what hobbies will he pursue? Will he grow up extroverted or introverted?
With my Human Resources background, I can’t help but wonder what his DISC profile will be.
This also makes me pause and wonder if I can learn something from this moment. After all, how can someone learn from a person whose life so far can be measured in minutes?
My mind quickly goes back to the idea of starting from scratch. Going back to a simpler time without the chaos of a life built out of constantly adding things to my agenda.
I look at Walter and feel a little jealous of his stress-free lifestyle—a life not yet overbooked with activities.
At a recent seminar, Lloyd Reeb suggested that the way to declutter your life is to stop being what he calls “sloppy busy.” He explained, “Sloppy busy is when you don’t act on high-value priorities and instead let low-value things take over.” His advice was to eliminate the waste in your life, then examine what’s left and identify the activities that overlap with each other.
Reeb’s example was praying and bike riding. The best example I can think of in my life is golf and spending time with friends. I like golfing, and it is something I can do with friends. So, using this logic, golfing stays in my life because giving it up means more than giving up golf.
When I discussed this concept with my son Mike—who also happens to be Walter’s dad—he suggested another perspective: consider the activities that can be put on hold. If something doesn’t interfere with the critical things in life, like work or family, then it’s okay to keep it. His example was pickleball, noting that if life gets busy and you can’t play for a few weeks, it’s no big deal. Wise advice.
As fall begins and a new year approaches, I look forward to spending time with my new grandson and trying to be more like him.
A decluttered life would give me the freedom to engage in more spontaneous activities with this wonderful new addition to my life.
