Personal Productivity & Life Planning

What associations do you have with the Yin-Yang symbol?

What do you think about when you look at this image?

The concept of yin and yang is a combination of two opposite and complementary principles.

In ancient Chinese philosophy, it is the balance of black and white, light and dark forces, soft and hard, past and future.

Similarly, our human goal is to exist in balance and harmony in our contradictory world.

The word "Tao" is translated from Chinese as "the way". From the concept of "Tao" arises the principle of yin-yang, where our entire life path is a balance between opposites.

The task of a person in this concept is to coordinate, balance all events in life and continue to move and change, listening to himself, his condition and what the time dictates.

In our modern world, we all face contradictions. Work continues at home online. At work, we often solve household problems.

Work-life balance, the balance between work and life - it's like the principle of yin-yang - you need to learn how to harmoniously combine these areas of life in order to move through life effectively. And achieve results both in personal life and at work.

In such a lifestyle, everything is harmoniously divided: permanent work, freelance projects, family, self-development, hobbies, recreation.

It is this harmonious separation that preserves physical and emotional health. Helps to properly distribute their forces and manage stress in our super-changing world. Taking care of yourself and being able to relax are important skills for the last several years according to the extreme changes and for the future.

Have you ever heard about the Balance Wheel coaching technique?

Coaches recommend doing this technique every three months to keep track of how you allocate your time and balance between different areas of your life.

We often use work time inefficiently, and then make up for it through the use of personal time.

Here are some rough calculations I will show you to get you to understand that only balancing leads to an effective life.

● There are only 168 hours in a week

● Of these, 56 go to sleep (112 left)

● 21 hours for breakfast, lunch and dinner (3 hours per day)

● The road to the office and back for 2 hours a day, total 10 hours if we have 5 working days per week

● Work - usually 40 hours a week - this is while maintaining real boundaries as 8 hours of office job every day

41 hours left for everything else

I suggest you now open your workbooks and fill out Exercise No. 1 “Wheel of Balance”.

But this is a non-standard Wheel.

You have two circles. One is a work day. The second is a day off. The second is a day off.

1 step.

Write in the wheel honestly what you do in your free time in the evening. It may even happen that you continue doing work tasks after 6 PM.

In the weekend wheel, spread out how you usually spend your weekends.

Fill in the fields "What do you devote time to".

2 step.

Analyze what kind of portrait of the day you have. Perhaps some of you will realize that you perfectly maintain the balance of life and work.

And someone will see that the time free from work is spent not quite qualitatively and in your favor.

In the column “What I would like to dedicate”, write down what you have long wanted to do, but have not done.

Rate from 1 to 3 how satisfied you are with the Work Life balance in your life, where:

● very dissatisfied

● a little imbalance

● well-balanced

So now you can see the portrait of the days you spent for job tasks and the rest time.

First step is always analyzing to understand the real situation to decide how to manage your efficiency/

Hope now you will carefully fulfill your calendar saving time for the important things.

Now I have one more question

Dear listeners, what do you think, what types of currency are the most expensive in life today?

This is a provocative question, because you can start answering about money.

And this is a question about a different kind of currency - energy and time.

We often think about money, forgetting about our life values ​​/ energy / time

So this is a real currency in our lives which we spent for living and they are very expensive providing us opportunities to earn money

We think about money every day. This is normal, money opens up a number of opportunities. However, we get money by investing the human currency - our resources.

We are all given a different supply of resources from birth. In some ways they are similar, in some ways they are different.

What is interesting is how differently we use these resources and what different results from life we ​​get in return.

I offer you this formula of our resources, a kind of human currency.

This is a pyramid, at the heart of which each of us is given a certain time.

Given different levels of energy.

And the values ​​that we independently can form for ourselves depending on our personality.

But the fact is that people can be on the 1st floor and not think about how to use their time.

On the 2nd floor, people are more effective: think about what tasks it is more efficient to invest time and energy in.

On the 3rd floor, people know their values ​​and relate everything in life to their values

Unfortunately, not all people reach the level of values ​​by living life unconsciously.

When we keep attention on balancing we have an effective life.

Please note that for a quality standard of living, we need to turn the pyramid upside down.

Please pay attention to Task #2 and draw an inverted pyramid upside down.

On the first floor, sharp angle down, sign "Values", 2nd floor "Energy", 3rd floor "Time"

Then the first floor will be our values ​​that set the direction for investing our energy and allocating our time.

The wrong distribution of energy and time often leads to a state of imbalance. And then leads to burnout.

Therefore, when we turn to our personal values, it solves many issues with the distribution of time and energy.

If you understand that your value is education - lifelong learning will you really not devote your time and energy to self-development?

If it's the healthy body, you understand that you need to spent energy and time in the gym

And please return to our 1st task - do you have activities in your week which are devoted to your values? Or maybe everything that you do - it's just somehow spending your time and energy without realizing why you do this - what values you are chasing?

So, now we really need to discuss the topic about value.

Please, think about this question

How do you understand the word "Values"?

I want to introduce you to the definition of values ​​according to the model of Viktor Frankl.

This is an Austrian psychiatrist, psychologist, philosopher and neurologist.

Former prisoner of the Nazi concentration camp.

Author of the direction of logotherapy (treatment by the search for meaning).

According to his model, we can discover this meaning of life in three different ways:

● by creating a work or doing a deed;

● by experiencing something or encountering someone

● by the attitude we take toward unavoidable suffering

The value of labor (work) and creativity

A major source of meaning is through the value of all that we create, achieve and accomplish.

The value of the activity that is useful to the world/society/company

Here it is important to answer the questions:

● What activity is valuable for me in general?

● What is the significance / value of what I do for me?

● What do I value in this activity?

The value of experiences

It is important to find something beautiful for yourself: admire nature, art, love another person / people:

● You need to answer the questions

● Communication with whom inspires me?

● What activities and processes inspire me, give me the strength to “get together” and move on?

● What do I like to do for the soul?

Frankl writes “Let us ask a mountain-climber who has beheld the alpine sunset and is so moved by the splendor of nature that he feels cold shudders running down his spine – let us ask him whether after such an experience his life can ever again seem wholly meaningless”.

That's why we really need to organize the life events which inspire us to feel the emotions and give us energy to move forward.

The value of attitude

Not everything is in our power. Life has limits and difficult experiences.

Determining the meaning in crisis / critical situations helps us not to freeze in a frozen state and move on in life.

Questions to yourself:

● What are my qualities that help me move forward, even when not everything is calm in life?

● What are my views and beliefs in life that give me the strength to cope with difficulties?

● How do I look at my life? What color are my lenses - the vision of life

Frankl argued that we always have the freedom to find meaning through meaningful attitudes even in apparently meaningless situations.

For example, an elderly, depressed patient who could not overcome the loss of his wife was helped by the following conversation with Frankl:

Frankl asked “What would have happened if you had died first, and your wife would have had to survive you.”

“Oh,” replied the patient, “for her this would have been terrible; how she would have suffered!”

Frankl continued, “You see such a suffering has been spared her; and it is you who have spared her this suffering; but now, you have to pay for it by surviving her and mourning her.”

The man said no word, but shook Frankl’s hand and calmly left his office.

I am asking you to do the Task #3 and answer the questions about you values according to Viktor Frankles model.

After fulfilling the chart please try to analyze how many time you spend for the really important values in your life.

And try to submit the tasks according to your values or try to change them in you calendar according to your values.

Understanding our values ​​helps us balance our time and energy in both work and personal life.

So what new values ​​have you discovered for yourself?

So we move another important topic - a burn out syndrome.

Have you ever experienced it?

If yes I understand you, I have had this experience in my life before I started to keep work life balance.

7 reasons to maintain balance in life

1. You get more done by investing energy in important areas of your life

2. You manage your time qualitatively by planning your time more thoughtfully

3. You save more energy because you manage time and do things that matter to you

4. You act according to your values ​​because you know them and don't ignore them.

5. You feel fulfilled because you maintain work-life balance

6. You choose the best options for yourself because you rely on values

You are emotionally stable because you are satisfied with the quality of your life

Without using the Effective life model we can experience burnout syndrome.

In May 2019, World Health Organisation described the signs of burnout syndrome:

● feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion;

● increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to job;

● reduced professional efficacy

The term “emotional burnout” was first introduced by the American psychiatrist Herbert Freudenberger in 1974.

The syndrome is defined as a phenomenon caused by prolonged stress. This is a factor that can influence the development of diseases

Stress may be a part of our lives, but burnout can be prevented and managed.

The modern world inevitably creates conditions for burnout.

We spend 8-10 hours a day behind the screen, communicate less in person, using social networks and instant messengers for this, the flow of incoming information is constantly growing.

It is difficult for us to cope with such pressure. Burnout is a natural consequence of this.

How do you think why I put the image of the battery here?

What kind of associations do you have according to the picture?

We are constantly charging the battery of our smartphones.

Do you agree that when we see 10% of the smartphone's charge, we begin to feel anxious. Especially if the charger is somewhere far away.

It is surprising that sometimes we are more attentive to the level of charge of smartphones than to our own level of charge.

In order to avoid burnout syndrome, first of all, you need to understand that only we are responsible for our emotional state.

I suggest you complete Task #4 called "Battery".

You will see the chart with 3 columns:

1) Something that takes your energy away:

It is important for us to realize what takes energy away in our life

We can delegate, reduce or eliminate these tasks/situations altogether.

For example, cleaning. Or extra talks on the sidelines.

If it is not possible to reduce the presence of this in life, then try to change your attitude towards this and remember the goal/aim why you need to do this

Yes, cleaning is energy-intensive, but if your room is clean, you can enjoy reading a book.

Keep a pleasant goal in mind while doing an unpleasant task.

The second column called Relaxed or something that helps you to relax and calm down:

These are activities that calm you down, return you to a state of zen. It could be a massage, a walk, a bath, or watching a movie.

Each of you, dear listeners, in this list will include your own individual ways.

The main thing is to understand what specifically relaxes you and practice it more often.

The third column - What charges you?:

These are exercises with a boost-up effect. Sports, outdoor activities, participation in the event, the creation of new ideas and so on.

Anything that increases your energy. It is advisable to have 2-3 such activites per week and plan them in the schedule.

In the exercise, you need to write out tasks, situations that take your energy away, help you to relax and return to balance. And charge, please you and give a large portion of energy.

We finished the 1rd part “How to Maintain Efficiency Through Balancing” and are moving to the second part “Intellectual and behavioral flexibility”

Have you ever heard the term VUCA- world?

The acronym VUCA characterizes the changeable and complex environment of the modern world, where there is no guaranteed stability.

The term was invented in the 1990s by the US military, and today it is used in the business environment to refer to the conditions in which companies operate.

Volatility - unstable situations and unpredictable changes - by their nature, speed, volume, dynamics. The duration of this state of affairs is unclear.

Uncertainty is the lack of information to predict the consequences and plan the necessary actions. We can no longer base their decisions on past experience and need to learn new things every day

Complexity - situations where there are many interconnected elements and a huge amount of information. Such a large number of factors greatly complicates the decision-making and planning processes.

Ambiguity - the lack of a clear understanding of the rules of the game. Sometimes this is caused by situational novelty and doubt, when the behavior of people in a new environment is not fully known.

That's why the modern world demands three important responses from us.

● ADAPTATION - the realization that we must be able to adapt, make decisions quickly, adapt and adjust

● INVENTORY - identify those strong skills and character traits that will help you survive and constantly learn new skills

● ABILITY TO NEGOTIATE is an area of ​​communication where it is important to maintain connections, close contacts in a new online environment

We will talk about the skill of adapting to constantly changing realities. And I'll tell you the story of Henry Ford. He was one of the first who started to produce cheap cars in America. His dream was to provide every American family with a car.

He found the formula for an inexpensive car: assembly line production, inexpensive black paint, and cheap parts.

The Ford company quickly took the lead. But the people who got the opportunity to buy cars now wanted to buy the same inexpensive cars, but in different colors. Not only in black.

To which Ford replied, "The Ford Model T is available in any color as long as it's black." At this time, competitors began to offer the same affordable cars, but in different colors, which led to the fact that Ford stopped to be the market leader and lost to competitors due to its stubbornness.

On the slide you see a graph from the book by John Maxwell, an American writer and researcher on the topic of leadership.

Innovators and those who quickly agree to change are always a minority. They see trends and adapt quickly.

Innovators or dreamers: create new ideas, but are not strategists.

Those who agree quickly instantly recognize a good idea. The organization listens to the opinions of these people. They try to convince others to accept this idea, although they themselves are not its authors.

Those who agree not immediately the majority.

In general, they evaluate new ideas rationally, but tend to maintain the status quo.

Those who agree late. They support the idea last. Often these people speak out against proposed changes. Some of them do not verbally agree with the changes, but gradually come to terms if most people have already changed.

Lagging behind people. Those who resist change till the end. They prefer the existing order of things. They live not in the future, but in the past.

Adaptability is a skill. Try to be open to new ideas, don't resist. Otherwise, you will be among those lagging behind the changes.

Why do you think professional gymnasts remain flexible?

They train muscle flexibility daily, it's an endless practice.

Our muscles can quickly lose flexibility if they are not constantly stretched.

Flexibility in behavior and thinking also works. It is impossible to remain flexible without practicing flexible behavior in life

There are three types of behaviors and mindsets that prevent us from adapting to change and remaining flexible.

Fixation on old habits, attitudes, past experiences.

Resistance to change. It takes a lot of time and energy to resist the changes that will come anyway.

Perfectionism - setting for the best result that never comes.

Because perfectionists are constantly creating the best version of a project, solution, business, losing time for implementation.

Have you noticed that at first IT products are released in beta version and improve along the way?

Recall situations when you were in a state of fixation, resistance to change and showed perfectionism

Write them in Task #5.

Track these states in order to stop yourself from the usual mechanisms of behavior in time.

Today we have studied two broad topics.

How to maintain efficiency through balancing.

How to save Adaptability and Flexibility in the modern world.

Completed 5 exercises and now you know:

● How do you spend your free time and do you need to balance work and personal life

● You have defined your values ​​based on which you can effectively invest your time and energy

● You have realized what activities reduce the level of your battery, bring it into balance and charge it to the fullest

● You understand how you can behave in situations of volatility

Thank you for being with me at this course.

I hope you finished the tasks, found out something new for yourself and now you will be more attentive on how you manage you life, your productivity and enjoyment of life.