My value for the first week was punctuality. Here’s how I applied it: Starting on Jan 1st night, I turned off devices (excluding Kindle) by 12:30 am and was in bed by 1 am.
In Q4, 2020, my sleep schedule got out of hand. I slept anytime between 3 and 6 am and woke up after seven hours. Most days, I felt as if I barely saw any sunlight because it would be sundown just a few hours after waking up. The worse feeling was the lack of routine. It was disorienting and demotivating.
It was a no-brainer to choose punctuality as my value and going to bed at a specific time as the way of applying it.
How the week went
“Punctuality is not about being on time, it’s basically about respecting your own commitments”
I wasn’t able to find the original source of this quote but it resonated with me deeply. This is exactly what I’m aiming for – to respect my own commitments. That will happen when I practice a bunch of values, punctuality being one of them.
The week went well except for one day when I turned off my devices at 12:31 am instead of 12:30 am. I felt a bit bummed but didn’t feel like I wasn’t being punctual. Also, it seemed like my problem stemmed from elsewhere. I had been on the phone with a friend and was unable to jump off on time as I felt worried that it would be rude. So perhaps what I actually need to work on is holding my boundaries without worrying that others might construe them in a negative light.
Going through the first week reminded me to always bear in mind that this is an exploration and the whole point is to ‘explore’. To feel curious and expansive. Not feel like it’s a ‘challenge’ or a punishment. I can allow myself grace if sometimes the execution is not flawless. As my friend Allysia said, I want a value to colour my eyes for a week so that I experience it in a different way. From that perspective, the first week was a rip-roaring success.
I enjoyed the first week and feel like I explored this value successfully. I was quite punctual and have become better for having focused on this value. I definitely had a heightened sense of punctuality through all seven days – so much so that other people noticed it too! I was always a few minutes early to appointments and events which left me feeling more prepared and relaxed. I turned off devices by 12:29 am every day (except on Wednesday like I described above) and would be in bed by 12:50 am. My sleep continued to be erratic, though, because I’d fall asleep only after 2-3 hours. The good part was that I used that time to read books. In fact, I finished reading two books these last seven days and am now reading the third. Reading gives me a lot of pleasure so I wasn’t ever bored when sleep didn’t come swiftly. I think my body is still getting used to the new schedule and in a few days, will get tired and sleepy after 30-60 minutes of being in bed as has been the case in the past.
Just the act of turning off devices and being in bed at a specific time makes me feel more in control of my time. I plan to continue to follow this schedule with a few tweaks.
Value for week #2
My next value is order (or orderliness)! Specifically, I’ll apply it to making my physical environment orderly. I’ll spend at least 10 minutes every day decluttering and arranging my room in an orderly fashion. If I finish tidying up my room before the seven days are up (which I don’t think will be the case), I’ll just move on to making my computer orderly.
Truth be told, I feel like I’ve been working on this already because I’ve been setting up systems and processes for my Q1 goals. I’ve brought order to my goal achievement process. Now I want to bring that order to my external world.
I’ll be back with details next week. Wish me luck! 😀