Welcome to 2010
Yes I know I’ve already posted twice on here this year (more on that later). But this is my first post coming out of my Digital Cleanse. What did I do in that week away from twitter, facebook, and all the tech “news” sites like engadget, joystiq, etc.?
- Incorporated a company
- Finished the second book of the Icewind Dale Trilogy (I started reading that book 3 years ago and was only on the third chapter)
- Designed two inventions…one of which I will perform a patent search and if it’s clear file a patent
- Wrote high level visions of seven software products two of which I am combining into a single solution and developing
- Spent quality time with my girls every evening.
- Lost 12 pounds
- Got more organized
- Got my MVP Award renewed (this wasn’t the result of anything I did this week but rather over the course of last year)
- Reconnected with my network
- Celebrated my Grandmother in law’s 85th birthday.
- Posted twice to my blog in one week. (Three times if you count today).
- A few other things I’m not allowed to mention.
All in all it’s been an INCREDIBLE week. I’ve never felt so energized before. And there’s only more to come.
What I Learned
By forcing myself to forgo twitter and facebook and essentially “mindless” browsing, my mind had to fill the void somehow. It craved the stimulus that constant updates and bite sized nuggets of news used to provide. Fortunately, just before Christmas, I purchased a bunch of Piccadilly notebooks. I know Moleskines are all the rage, but I have a frugal mindset right now and these guys were heavily discounted at Barnes and Nobles. But I did see a really nice day planner Moleskine that caught my eye, I passed on it. One I selected to be my idea book (a soft covered ruled small notebook), another my journal and meeting note taking book (hard covered small graph paper), and a third is my design book (hard covered large graph paper). I feel naked without them. The first one that makes a Pomodoro notebook has a customer for life.
I bought some extras for my wife as well and showed her the pocket in the back where she can stuff all the receipts she likes to collect. She’s sticking with her other notebooks for the time being. But she does comment when she notices me opening my notebook “Uh-oh he’s pulling out the Piccadilly.”
I’ve decided that going forward, I will confine my usage of twitter to a set time each day. Facebook, it’ll be relegated to pure casual time. There’s not much there for me business wise. Most of my business socializing is through linkedin or Twitter. I’ve never really done the myspace or any of the other pure “social web” sites. Frankly, I don’t have the time.
Right now, I look at my time as an investment that is worth more than money. If I’m not doing something that gives me a return on that investment, I damn sure better enjoy it. Twitter in moderation is a good investment. Spending all day checking out your tweet stream isn’t (not that I really did that, but I spent more time than I care to mention with twitter open and having it closed for seven days made it patently obvious that there are better things that I can do with my time.
What did you do with your Digital Cleanse? If you didn’t do one, what are you waiting for?