Comfortable Chaos. Carolyn Harvey & Beth Herrild

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      The next step is to look back to your “as is” circle chart from Exercise 1 and see if your time is being allocated in a way that supports your priorities. You may look at some of the larger pieces and question their relevance. Don’t get too discouraged. For example, working may be a large slice of your pie, but it certainly supports your priority to feed and clothe your family, and hopefully it also supports a desire to use your skills and talent for tangible benefits. The question may be: Am I spending the right amount of time on working? That’s a complicated question and the answer will be tied to your unique characteristics, finances, and lifestyle choices. The rest of the book will help you with this issue.

      Household chores may be another major portion of your day and for good reason. It takes an enormous amount of time to maintain a home and, possibly, a yard, not to mention performing the role of schedule manager for the family. If these duties are preventing you from spending time on your priorities then this is an area to scrutinize.

      If you have any inspirations for ideas that would better align you with your priorities, then go back and jot them next to one of your circle charts. We’ll do more work on this throughout the book and you will gain new insights and ideas that will further shape your plan for spending your time.

      Now that you have completed the circle chart exercises and thought about your priorities, it’s time to move on to your co-efficient for chaos.

      Your Coefficient for Chaos

      What is your personal tolerance for chaos? Maybe you only feel really alive and energized if you are doing several things at once and have a lot going on around you. In other words, you love the thrill of the rapids and will seek them out whenever possible! Maybe you are someone who prefers to work on one project at a time, and keep your surroundings calm and orderly. You really enjoy the pools of calm water and will paddle your way out of the rapids as quickly as possible. Neither of these styles is good or bad or right or wrong. They just are. Different people simply have different levels of tolerance for all of life’s frenetic activity. We call this level of tolerance your “coefficient for chaos” or CFC.

      Your personal coefficient for chaos is probably a result of your genetic makeup and the environment in which you grew up. Many people cite their childhood as the factor that shaped their tolerance for chaos and noise. The interesting thing is that the same environment seems to affect different people in a variety of ways. Some people will say that since they grew up in a large and noisy family, they are very used to and comfortable with chaos. Others who came from a similar environment have chosen to have no children, or only one, and are very clear that a noisy chaotic environment is not what they want.

      Exercise 3 will help you to plan your ideal course down the river by learning about your coefficient for chaos. Once you know your threshold of chaos, you can make choices and plan your time in a way that best fits your style.

       Exercise 3: Determining Your Coefficient for Chaos

      In the quiz below, simply circle your answer to each question. Typically, your first reaction is the best indication of your personal tolerances. Try not to overthink your responses as you may end up with an unrealistic picture.

      Also, remember that your answers today represent a snapshot in time. You may answer the questions differently on another day or in a different phase of your life. Nevertheless, today’s answers will provide you with some valuable insight.

      1. When you get time to yourself, do you tend to:

      a) call a friend and chat

      b) retreat into solitude

      c) a little of each

      2. When the phone rings, do you often:

      a) hurry to answer by the second or third ring

      b) let the machine or voicemail get it

      c) depends on what you are doing

      3. To relax, do you prefer:

      a) going out for a walk or being with friends

      b) lying on the couch or reading a book

      c) depends on your mood that day

      4. When you are in a crowd:

      a) you find the people around you fun and energizing

      b) plan to leave as soon as possible

      c) may stay if it is an enjoyable event

      5. When you turn on some music do you:

      a) play it loud and often have other things going on

      b) play it as background music and prefer it soft

      c) depends on your mood

      6. Do you:

      a) enjoy the freedom of being spontaneous

      b) feel best when you have a plan for your day and follow it

      c) like some of each

      7. Are you usually:

      a) late for appointments

      b) early

      c) right on time

      8. Do you prefer having:

      a) several projects going at once

      b) one project going at a time

      c) a couple СКАЧАТЬ