More 3AM Wisdom

I don't know if it's the holidays or what, but I am finding myself here again, up at 3AM and sitting in front of my computer. What's up with that?

Not one to waste time, I am busily plowing through the day's to-do list, crossing off items in a whirlwind of activity. Amazing how much you can get done in one hour when the house is completely silent. Of course, it helps that I'm not likely to get phone calls or emails in teh middle of the night as well!

And yet I know that I'll be able to fall fast asleep after completing a solid hour of my tasks for the day. I'll start the day so far ahead, a nap is not totally out of hte question.

You know that old Ben Franklin definition of insanity, don't you?

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

Yeah, well I've decided to do something different.

We leave town on Wednesday, to return to New Orleans and spend Christmastime with my family for a little over a week. Instead of frantically scrambling at the last minute (as we are prone to do when traveling), I have diligently planned ahead. So far, the only items left undone are those that were delegated to my husband.

No, no, this isn't one of THOSE kinds of postings. I am not a fan of "spouse-bashing" so you won't find anything like that here or in any of my other blogs. I mean, consider the alternatives?

I could play the martyr and try to do everything myself, so that I don't have to rely on the hubby to procrastinate or forget something.

I could nag him for not getting things done early, like I had the good foresight to do.

Nah,I don't like either of those alternatives.

Successful people know what to delegate, to whom and how often to follow up. You've got to yield some control, otherwise you end up a stressed out control freak, miserable and frustrated. (More about how to overcome your control freakishness here.)

The best thing you can do in any relationship is just do what makes you happy. You worry about YOU - and let the other person worry about them.

I know, it sounds contrary to what our society pushes, doesn't it? Always wanting us to put other people first....well, maybe I'll write more about that in a later post. For now, just suffice with this: are you happiest when you are nagging someone else about what they are NOT doing, or when you are personally taking action to get something done? Yeah, I thought so.

As I was saying, you've got to learn to let go a little bit if you want to maintain your own sanity. This was a tough lesson for me to learn.

So about this packing....

I pulled all the clothing, shoes, etc that I am bringing, plus everything for our toddler, and it's all ready to be packed. The husband is pulling his stuff in the AM and I'm getting packed a full 20 hours (or so) before we leave town. This will be a new record for us!

Sure, we don't have a catsitter arranged yet, but I'm not worried about it. I've delegated that to my partner (husband) and I know he'll take care of it. If I know it will get done, does it really matter whether he arranges it a week in advance, or calls our neighbor while we're on our way to the airport. Nah, if I think that matters, I'm only kidding myself and it would stem from some underlying need I had to control things again.

It's hard to tell if this is making any sense, since it's 3AMish right now.

All I know is that I was tired of arguing before every trip (especially since we travel a dozen or so times per year) so I decided to do something different, with the expectation that I will get different results.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Oh, I almost forgot, here is your ??? of the day:
Where in your life are you pleading insanity by doing the same thing over and over again and expecting differnt results? Are you willing to try something different today?