Good day everyone. Thank you to all those amazing souls who continue to read my posts. I so appreciate you all taking the time to read my words and to leave your comments. I feel so blessed to have you all here.

While thinking about my son, Mike, the other day instead of feeling so sad, I thought of ways to make my days better.

I came up with three things. I call them my Daily Triple Agenda. (DTA for short).

First, I try to learn something new every day. If I can’t actually learn something new, then I try something new. This idea can prove overwhelming or utterly daunting, but approach it simply. Switching up your daily routine, finding the motivation to tackle an assignment that has stalled or prepare a meal you’ve never made before can all put a checkmark in this box. Basic, simple things like getting your tea at Starbucks instead of Tims. Drive a different route home. Pick up your mail in the afternoon instead of the evening. It’s easy to tweak daily tasks you’ve been doing forever.

Last week, I had some housekeeping duties to perform on my website. In order to set-up an easily accessible online portfolio for prospective editors to access, I had to load up all my published articles to my press page. A web designer had prepared a step-by-step tutorial for me that he sent ages ago. I just left it sitting in my mailbox. I dreaded jumping into this one!

But to be true to my DTA, I took a deep breath and clicked on the link to the tutorial. To my surprise (and delight), the steps in the tutorial were not that difficult to follow! I was astounded and wondered why I had waited so long to tackle this job. Converting all my docs to pdfs, uploading them to my website and choosing a “featured image” was about all there was to it. The result is here. (click on the writing sub-category)

So now when I query an editor, I can point them in the direction of my press page and not have to enumerate what writing I’ve had published. I considered this challenge a win/win. I know this job would still be incomplete if it wasn’t for my DTA.

Second, focus daily on gratitude. I know this comes up a lot these days. But I’m mindfully paying attention to all that I have surrounding me. Sometimes I write down what I’m grateful for. Sometimes I just sit outside in the backyard with my cup of tea and think about what I’m grateful for. Sometimes I think about gratitude at night just before I fall asleep (if I fall asleep!). Again, this one is very simple. Choose to remember three things in your life that bring a smile to your face and a glow to your heart. Your garden, your friend, your pet. Your health, your home, your grandchildren. Having had Mike for 38 years.

Third, I’ve become more conscious of telling at least one person a day that I love them. If I forget during the day, I can always tell my little dog, Sophie, that I love her! Perhaps not a great substitute for a live human being but I do it anyways.

Keeping my DTA in mind has improved my life. Sure, I still concentrate heavily on getting my to-do list complete, but now I take the time to be sure I’ve also factored in my DTA. Somehow, someway doing three simple things a day makes life better, enhances my feelings of well-being and boosts my levels of happiness in the midst of all the chaos.

So, please feel free to steal my DTA or make up your own.

Thanks everyone. Take care.

 

Kim