Our Schedule as a Garden

Sometimes the key to greater success is knowing when to quit something as well as when to start. For example, during this year, I took a careful look at which of the fairs and festivals were producing the best and worst results for me, and that made it easy to decide which events to keep doing and which ones to erase from my schedule.

While I considered the fact that this would leave some openings in my schedule, I decided that I would be comfortable with those open days, using some of the time to investigate other opportunities plus just allowing some downtime for rest and for fun.

I had a feeling that there were other opportunities out there, but sometimes my schedule was just too full to check them out, and sometimes the events that were filling up my time were not productive.

So here I am, half way through the year, and this strategy has produced better results than the previous year.

I am also in the process of cleaning out my email address book and reconnecting with people, and this effort is already bearing fruit, although I still have a long way to go.

Networking and brainstorming with other people has been a valuable part of this process, providing valuable inspiration and ideas.

It is a trap that we can fall into to think that if we are busy all the time that we will get the most results. That is only a partial truth. Being busy is good, but not all things are worth an equal effort.

Managing your schedule like tending a garden. Plant beds need to be weeded (Wait a minute! Not those weeds!) and pruned (trimming off the dead branches) in order to provide more room for new growth, and watered (giving your friends a little nourishment) so that they have material to create with when they draw down the sunlight and weave it into new greenery, flowers and edibles. Yes, it is even easier to find a few spots where we might even add a few more flowers now, and isn't that delightful? Just for the sheer variety of color, texture or fragrance.

It's easier to recognize what needs to be done using this example, isn't it? We can keep our schedule full of the activities we have been doing, and it is not until we stop and consider where our greatest growth has come that we recognize our next best area to focus on.

Our bodies are gardens, our schedules are gardens, our connections are gardens. Tend them and enjoy the beauty that flows and the results you receive.