A Ted Talk, a Podcast and YouTube changed my life during Covid-19

How you can accomplish a lot using small, focused, chunks of time

Photo Provided by Author (Day 1 painting)

So here I am practicing social distancing like a good global citizen, catching up on my mile-long YouTube “watch later” list when different media all start jelling together into a message that even I couldn’t ignore.

First came Ryan Holiday and Tim Ferriss speaking together on YouTube’s Daily Stoic channel (I know, right‽ Two faves on at the same time!) concerning alive time vs.dead time and how I could look back on my time during Covid-19 and say that I had done more than just survive.

Then there was the TEDx talk by Josh Kaufman saying I could learn anything reasonably well in 20 hours; and showing off some mad electric ukulele skills.

Back to Tim Ferriss who said (2) things on different media outlets:

• Commit to 6 (or some number) to give yourself time to try things and then walk away knowing you gave it a realistic shot.
• Limit what you’re willing to spend/lose on anything and if the opportunity falls in that category — go for it.

And finally, advice from, “Elastic Habits” by Steven Guise stating that it’s the habit which is important. Small doses lead to big results, and that once you gather momentum, you’ll most likely go way beyond the minimum expectation you set for yourself.

Thanks to Daniele Levis Pelusi for making this photo available freely on @unsplash 🎁 https://unsplash.com/photos/rmM8V7L1BhM

A realization formed like putting cookies on a cooling rack:

Why don’t you take on some hobbies that you can do quickly, easily, and cheaply?

So…BAM! Bob’s your uncle, and my list was born:

• Rollerblading
• Painting (like Bob Ross — My child says he’s a national treasure.)
• Improving my writing skills
• Finally learning more than pigeon Spanish
• (And meditation, can’t forget the whole zen thing!)

But that’s 50,000 hours of work! It can’t be done, man!

Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers” is an amazing book, but I’m not looking to become extraordinary…just good enough in these new hobby endeavors.

So, what will you do?

Which leads me to where I am now. (Feel free to skip my internal monologue below and start reading at the next picture. The only thing worse than your own internal voice nagging you is someone else’s!)

1. I have failed repeatedly since college at rollerblading. I’ve had the rollerblades for years, but after a few outings, they always end up back in the closet. Other than the cost of the pads, this is free.
2. And..why not take up painting? I determined that I was will willing to spend $100 on this endeavor and see where it took me.
3. Followed by: a desire to hone my communication skills by writing articles on Medium. Again, other than a subscription, which was my choice, this is a free endeavor.
4. Finally, why not throw another log onto the fire because even more frustrating than failing at Number 1 on my list, I have failed to learn Spanish. Yet another free endeavor with YouTube videos and apps…sure, why not?
5. Oh…I almost forgot….I’m working on meditation as well at night. Not exactly free since I use the breathe function on my Apple Watch, but free enough since I owned the watched before taking on this endeavor.

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

You need more than hopes and free stuff. You need to develop a plan…

True. Very True oh wise and annoying inner-voice.

So, for a grand commitment of 4-5 minutes a day (Whoa — slow down there, son!), I combined principles from “Elastic Habits” and 20 hours, to become adequate without disrupting my daily routine other than swapping mindless activities. (ie, Clash Royale and internet browsing which I wrote about here.)

The power is in getting started. Once you’ve hit your goal, you’ll most likely continue, but knowing you can stop at any time gives you a sense of power rather than servitude.

How are you coming along?

I’m glad you asked! Here’s a run down of my time so far (based on my obsessive need to put everything in spreadsheets…now, with sparklines!)

Basically, I’m writing this article while rollerblading with a spanish -speaking meditation group and will paint my reactions tonight.

Actually…

I commit to about 1 minute or 1 lesson or 1 lap a day. For example, I can paint a 4” canvas in about 45 minutes but I only commit to 1 minute of time. I commit to rollerblading one lap on my walking circuit, but I usually do three. And, I only commit to writing for 2–5 minutes a day which expands into much more.

These fit nicely into small blocks of time that are becoming my new norm rather than reaching for the phone. It’s a fun, relaxing, rewarding set of skills that are breaking up the monotony of Covid isolation while (perhaps) providing some recreational and healthy habits that will continue once we are able to say “hi” to each other without looking like Billy the Kid once again.

¡Hasta luego y tiene un buen día!