Tag Archive for: planning

Busy

Yesterday, Monic and I were busy with coaching interviews in Leiden all day.
We both enjoy taking walks with missionaries through the day if we possibly can.
Whilst walking with Allana Frost,we stopped and sat by a large pond.
We were talking about how busy we both were with various assignments and deep in conversation.
As we talked this huge goose approached us looking for food.
It looked pretty mean!
The two of us looked at each other, admittedly a little frightened, and thought it was going to bite us!
We sat still, until it turned away in disappointment that we had nothing for it to eat.
The distraction allowed us to pause, have some fun, and capture a picture or two!
For those moments we stopped being busy with our conversation and laughed!

Choices

Busy, is a choice…..right?
An almost standard reply many give or receive these days when asked how things are is “I’m really busy”.
Are we doing ourselves any favours by staying so busy?
Or is it an impression we simply want to make to others by wearing a busy badge?
Is it really too easy to default to the word “busy” to describe your life?
What is it that you are really saying about yourself and your life?
Maybe you are busy, and you need to focus on your time management and being more productive.
“Crazy-busy’ is a great armour; it’s a great way for numbing. What a lot of us do is that we stay so busy, and so out in front of our life, that the truth of how we’re feeling and what we really need can’t catch up with us.” – Brené Brown

Some Ideas

My invitation today – is to consider these four very simple ideas…
1. Slow down a little more and consider what matters most.
2. Determine not to use the word “busy” in response to any question!
3. Lear to say No!
4. Enjoy relaxation time.
Don’t let busyness hold you back from achieving what truly matters.
After all – busy, is a choice – right?

To a Mouse

When missionaries stay at the mission home, I love to share something of my Scottish heritage with them.
I introduced our national bard (poet) Robert Burns, to our last visitors and read his classic poem “To a Mouse.”
In it, he shares his remorse at destroying the nest of a tiny field mouse with his plough, whilst considering the futility of planning for a hopeful future in the face of unforeseen consequences.
And so, off I went…“Wee, sleekit, cowrin, tim’rous beastie…”
Their bewildered and perplexed faces were a delight to behold, as they struggled to understand a single word!
Today, I want to focus on one line of the poem; “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men/Gang aft a-gley.”
In other words, no matter how well we prepare, our plans can often go astray, unfolding in unexpected ways.
Remember the familiar phrase “Life is what happens to you when you are making other plans”.
Just like the tiny mouse, all of us are subject to unforeseen events and must adapt accordingly.
By doing the best we can, we have to prepare even for what we are unprepared for.
Goal setting and planning are an essential part of everyday missionary life.
“He, who every morning plans the transactions of the day and follows that plan, carries a thread that will guide him through a labyrinth of the busiest life.” – Victor Hugo
When we plan our days to fill a purpose, rather than just fill them to keep busy, we become more productive, especially when we adapt to the unexpected.
Plan to expect the unexpected.
Life’s lessons often come unexpectedly!
M. Russell Ballard said “A goal is a destination or an end, while a plan is the route by which you get there…. Goal setting is essentially beginning with the end in mind. And planning is devising a way to get to that end.”
Remember the old cliché, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”.
Many essays have been written on “To a Mouse”.
However, like the “wee, sleekit, cowrin, tim’rous beastie…,” I suggest it’s always best to prepare for the here and now.
As you plan today, what do you want to make happen?

Expect the Unexpected!

Things don’t always turn out the way you planned!
On Tuesday, we waited at the arrivals gate at Schiphol Airport for our 5 new missionaries, arriving on three different flights from the USA.
“Are you sure its gate 3?”
A careful check (again) of the arrival gates clearly showed that 2 new missionaries arriving on different flights, would arrive at Gate 3 and the other 3 missionaries (on the same flight) would arrive at Gate 4.
Time passed….
No missionaries.

Hmm?

Then a message from Eldon McClure.
“Hey, President Watson? I’m at Schiphol, just got through customs. Who is going to pick me up, and where do I meet them?”
We concluded he’d arrived at gate 4, not gate 3, passed us by and arrived at the information point.
Off I went to pick him up. One down, four to go.
Back to gate 3.
Still no further missionaries.
Our Assistants go to gate 4 “just in case” for the next arrival due at Gate 3.
A few moments later they walk back to gate 3, with our new arrival Alexandra Williams.
Two down, three to go.
A check again of the arrivals board.
Yes, they are all due in at Gate 4.
So, in turn, all of us head to Gate 4.
Time passed.
“Are you sure its gate 4?”
“…Yes, take a look yourself…!”
“We’ll go to gate 3, just in case…,” said the Assistants.
More time passed.
Then a call from the Assistants, our final three Janessa Anderson, Jaislyn Kimball and Emerson Randle arrive at gate 3!
Our reactions… to the confusion?
We all laughed, hugged and chatted away.
Welcome to the Netherlands! 😆
Over the last 15 months, my new philosophy on things in general (and especially at Schiphol) is this,
…to be constantly aware of the reality that most things aren’t going to turn out how you expect!
𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝!
What do you do when things don’t go as you expect?

What is my destination?

Daily we travel throughout Belgium and the Netherlands – by road.
With the onset of spring and summer – boats of all shapes and sizes are back on the Dutch waterways.
The Results
• Bridge watchmen are busy again
• Bridges of all shapes and sizes constantly open and close.
• More traffic jams and delays are constant daily occurrences.
• Boats wait for the opportunity to pass under bridges.
My observation – delays and waiting are once again commonplace.
Another thing for sure, over the next few months, in our journey planning, if we are to arrive at our destination on time, then we need to make sure that we leave a few minutes earlier.
During my planning, I frequently consider a few questions.
– Where am I going?
– How do I intend to get there?
– Which road will I travel?
– When do I need to arrive?
These questions are regular considerations in my current assignment.
Perhaps these are similar for you too?
In a like manner – there is a much bigger question in life that each of us must deal with…

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧?

Thinking about our journey toward eternal life, in each of our own journeys through our mortal experience, there will be many delays, along with several twists and turns.
Life is a long journey on a long road, but it helps to have a vision of where that road eventually leads too and to understand what our final destination is.
Ultimately, there is One to whom we can look, One whom we can trust with our whole hearts. He is “the way, the truth, and the life” – John 14:6
He will help overcome all of the delays and bridge the gap for each of us to eternal life through the Atonement and His personal sacrifice.
I know that following Jesus Christ is the only sure way to arrive on time, without delay at our 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.
And so can you…

Goals – do we need a bigger truck?

Another year, and goal setting is back on everyone’s mind again – so are goals really important?
I’ve been setting goals since I was 12 years old – I’m a believer!
Goals are all about organising and planning.
Dallin H. Oaks captures the whole essence of goals setting in this little story….
“Two men formed a partnership. They built a small shed beside a busy road. They obtained a truck and drove it to a farmer’s field, where they purchased a truckload of melons for a dollar a melon.
Then they drove the loaded truck to their shed by the road, where they sold their melons for a dollar a melon. They drove back to the farmer’s field and bought another truckload of melons for a dollar a melon.
Transporting them to the roadside, they again sold them for a dollar a melon. As they drove back toward the farmer’s field to get another load, one partner said to the other, “We’re not making much money on this business, are we?” “No, we’re not,” his partner replied. “Do you think we need a bigger truck?”
“We don’t need a bigger truckload of information, either,” Elder Oaks said. “Our biggest need is a clearer focus on how we should value and use what we already have.”
Goals help us to do that. Goals stretch us and focus our minds on what is really necessary.
My advice – set a few significant specific goals and then concentrate on reaching them. They will help you to grow, develop and succeed.
What is your learning takeaway from the story?