Tag Archives: organization

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Organize

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Organize- arrange into a structured whole; order.

One of the best things a person can do to make your life more functional and smooth is to find a system of organization that works for you. It will be different than anyone else because you are a unique individual, and what you need to have organized is different than others. Finding a system that accentuates your positives and helps you manage the difficulties can make you more efficient and your life more enjoyable. It begins with conscious thought about your life, what you need to organize better, and managing projects. It starts with awareness of your dreams, emotions, words, and actions today.

Organizing Your Physical Space

We live in a world that encourages us to collect things. Most of us are pretty good at managing but not so great at organizing the stuff we have gathered into our lives. When there is no organization in your physical being, then it is hard to have an organization in other areas that are important to your conscious awareness. The material is related to the mental and spiritual parts of your life. So clarifying one place is going to benefit you in other areas as well.

Energy goes with an organization; it is a feeling of being streamlined and efficient. Once space clears, there is room for more to come into your life. Organizing your physical space is a great way to start typing your whole life. Some would say that things are just too messy and have always been that way. I say that the way to tackle any big job is a little bit at a time. Do a little bit every day, and soon you will have a handle on your organization. It is a mentality that we develop the standards we will accept. Organize your physical space, and you will begin to thrive.

Organize your Schedule

We are all given the same number of hours in the day, but some people take better advantage of theirs. Proper use of time is done by focusing on scheduling your activities into a time frame and being disciplined in following it. Once you devote the time you have allotted to the things that will be productive and follow that, those things will start to flourish. Making a proper schedule involves balancing work, thought, fun, and adequate rest.

Each day doesn’t have to be scripted out by the minute, but it does have to be scripted in general if you want to get any consistency out of it. People are natural routine seekers. Get a routine that works, and you will be more likely to follow a schedule and get more of what you want to accomplish done. The discipline of action is more natural if you have a plan to follow every day. Organize your time, and you will get the most out of every day.

Organize your Mind

Now we come down to the actual creation of higher consciousness. It is organizing your thoughts. We all have a brain that is continually producing a non-stop reel of study into our heads. Most of what we think is repetitive and not helpful. Left on its own, our minds would move randomly from one thing to the next. Fortunately, we can watch our thoughts. We are not the mind; a brain is a tool that we control, and with organization and observation, we can think better and achieve more.

By focusing on our thoughts and evaluating the usefulness of each, we can organize our minds into more productive tools. We can hold only one thought in our consciousness at a time, so choosing beliefs that are beneficial to you and your existence will allow more success. If you need to improve your thoughts, then expose your mind to new sources of knowledge. Read books about subjects that interest you, and your thoughts will become more powerful. If you spend your time learning about things that will make you more money or more successful, your thoughts will move in that direction.

Organize for Success

Take some time today and honestly assess where your life can currently use some organization. Then make a plan to organize it. What would it take to become more organized? What actions could you take right now to improve? What great things will happen when you do organize physically, your schedule, or your mind?

The answers to these questions should be intriguing to you and lead your thoughts toward actions that will make you happier and more successful. Once you have an organization in your life, you are not tripping over things all the time, both physically and metaphorically. The key is to start to be conscious of the organizational needs in your life. Then start thinking thoughts of organization, noticing the corresponding emotions, the words you speak, and the actions that become more organized. It all begins by becoming more aware of how you organize your life.

“Three Rules of Work: Out of clutter find simplicity; From discord find harmony; In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity” ~ Albert Einstein.

“The best way to get something done is to begin.” ~Author Unknown

“Time is a created thing. To say ‘I don’t have time is to say ‘I don’t want to.’ “~ Lao Tzu

 

Life

Lessons Learned From Camp Caribou, Part 1

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caribou staff photo 93
A staff photo from one of the years I worked there, I think 93. Big Bill in the middle, our fearless leader.

There are places you experience in your life which leave an indelible mark etched on your soul. You may even know it at the time but I am not sure you can appreciate it until years later.  When I was in college, I had the great privilege to work for four summers at a summer camp in Central Maine called Camp Caribou.  To describe the whole experience would take a book, but suffice it to say I learned many lessons of life there I still think of today.  Bill and Martha Lerman were the owners and operators of the camp and they were the major lesson teachers there. I am sure that thousands of young people have benefitted more than I have from their kindness, honesty, and consistency, but none appreciate it more.  These are a few of the lessons I learned at Camp Caribou in Winslow, Maine.

First, to set the scene, Camp Caribou is located on a peninsula on Pattie’s Pond. To access the camp you have to travel down a half mile long dirt road. I remember the first time I drove down it, not really knowing what to expect, a little fear and excitement mixed together. What story would this road reveal? I am sure that every kid of all ages felt something similar the first time they traveled that road.  It is windy, and people honked as they got to some curves to alert anyone coming the other way.  And then suddenly out of the woods, it opens up and brings you into the middle of the camp.  A playground of fun, with all kinds of activities kids, love.  It was enchanting and my education was just beginning.

Leadership Bill Lerman Style

Leadership is a skill some come by naturally, and others develop through experience. I know that I learned how to be a good leader from Bill Lerman. It is a story I tell often about digging a ditch. If you want to get five people to dig a ditch, do it quickly and enthusiastically, you get in the ditch with them and work like hell for about 5 minutes. All the others will fall in line and dig like hell too. Then you can back away and let them finish because the momentum is already set.  I was fortunate enough to observe Bill do this with me as one of the workers, and to later be able to lead others to the same ditch digging task. (different ditch)  Lead by example, and never ask anyone else to do something you wouldn’t do yourself. That lesson has proven to transcend all of the many careers I have participated in over the years.  I am continually grateful for the lessons Bill taught me. It has proven invaluable.

That is just one of many things that Bill taught. He probably doesn’t even know that he does it. He has a very unique voice and style of speaking so, his stories resonate with you and I do believe I developed a pretty good imitation of the man.  Pre-camp, before the kids came was a lot of work, getting everything ready for the kid’s arrival and training for the staff. All camps I am sure have some form of this, but with Bill, it was a one of a kind show.  Have a look at the video and listen to him talk.

Kindness Martha Lerman Style

One of the lasting memories I carry from my Camp Caribou days is the kindness that Martha Lerman always brought to everyone. And I mean every one. It didn’t matter if you were a camper or a counselor, she would find a way to make sure you felt like you belonged and were important to what was going on.  It could be taking the whole staff out to a movie during pre-camp when everyone had been working hard. Or making sure there was some kind of “treat” for the staff during staff

I am in this picture somewhere, but honestly have no idea where. My first year at camp.

meetings.  When I was in that first year of being a counselor, Martha often checked to make sure that I was doing OK.

It could be a run down the road with a kid who needed some encouragement, or just a quick conversation with someone who needed to be uplifted. Her kindness never shuts off.  I have seen the power of being kind over the years and its alternative.  I now try to treat people with the mantra of “kindness first”, and I have been fortunate to have many good role models in that area, but Martha Lerman was definitely one of the most powerful examples of consistent and powerful kindness I ever experienced, I am eternally grateful for that.

Brotherhood

There are two types of family in life, the ones you are born into and then there are the ones you grow into.  At Camp Caribou, it was the kind you grew into.  All of the staff members came from all over the world and had different skills, backgrounds, religions, and philosophies about life.  Yet, enter the peninsula of Camp Caribou and all that is washed away. It is your character and ability to work together that separates you. I value all of the people that I worked with and the unique skill set they brought to the table. Some were singers, some were great athletes, others got the job done every time they were called upon.  Above all other things, there were people who I could rely on for encouragement, a joke, to get out of the camp every other night, or to endure an evening activity or bunk night with.

Camp places you in a 24 hour, intense experience, so you bond with others quickly and it is a unique thing that will stay with you forever.  Two summers ago I was able to reunite with a few of the people I worked with at Camp Caribou. Although we are all much older, the relationships were still the same and the laughs just as genuine.  I learned the value of sharing an experience with someone and remembering the good things about them and it. All of my Caribou brothers are valuable, those I was close to and those I worked with for years. I see them now on Facebook and wish them all the best of everything that life has to offer.

There are too many lessons to include in just one day, so like the second half of the summer, tomorrow will carry us to the end when everyone will go home.