How to Have More Everyday Adventures, or What I Learned From Linda Formichelli’s How to Do It All
January 20, 2017
If you want to enrich your life with activities
that inspire you, and you’d like a jumpstart into action, then Linda
Formichelli’s newest book How to Do It All: The Revolutionary Plan to Createa Full, Meaningful Life—While Only Occasionally Wanting to Poke Your Eyes Out With a Sharpie is a good place to start.
You don’t have to use all—or any—of them; you can choose
your own Desires. Formichelli offers examples of three levels of goals for each
Desire, from very simple to more involved. For example, if your Desire was to
travel more, a simple goal could be taking a day trip; a more complicated one
would be taking an overseas trip.
What are some everyday adventures you’d like to experience in 2017?
How to D-I-A flies in the face of the ubiquitous
advice to slow down and simplify your life. Formichelli writes, “Would you
rather look back on a year that was full of fun, adventure—and yes, some
stress—or remember a year where you floated through your days stress-free, but
that’s pretty much all you did?” She does not believe stress is always bad for
you, or that everything we do we (should) do for someone else (and neither do I).
One of the more helpful tools for me was the exercise in
determining your top three values—the why behind your Desires. Once
you’re clear on what you value, it’s much easier to see what goals will be
easier to follow through with. Another plus is a packet of worksheets at the
end of the book, also available to download.
I appreciated the advice to rethink my schedule and habits
to give my D-I-A Desires prime time, not just the dregs of time left over after
I do everything else. The book was worth reading for the energy boost and
motivation alone. My only caution would be to remember you determine
what feels full and what feels too busy for you. Formichelli has a remarkable
amount of energy if she’s anything like she comes across in print, and I would
be exhausted and unhappy if I tried to do as much as she does.
I found How to Do It All readable, practical, and
entertaining, and I recommend it for anyone looking to enrich her life with
meaningful activities.
What are some everyday adventures you’d like to experience in 2017?
7 comments
Dear Kathy - looks like this would be a splendid book for all us creative souls who oft times put off what we enjoy doing because it seems less than important. Will be on the look out for this book. Hope you are having a great weekend. Hugs! P.S. sent you an email too - so check it out.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your review of my book! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteDebbie--Definitely. That was one of the big things I took away from the book--don't just give yourself and your dreams the dregs of time left after you take care of everyone else. There's tons of good info in it, and it's pleasant read. Thanks for your email, too. :)
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure, Linda. Thanks for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteLove that she's acknowledging that not everyone wants to live a calm, uncluttered, stress-free life! It seems like that's the going theme in many books right now and I suppose when your life if filled with chaos, clutter and the wrong kind of stress, those ideas hold an appeal.
ReplyDeleteI'd like more adventures that put me out of my comfort zone and challenge me in new ways (not how much stress I can endure for however long, but things) like going new places, learning new ways of doing something or looking at the same old in a new way.
I'll have to take a look at the book. Thanks for sharing!
Laure, YES! There is a nice, big space between "Omm-ing your life away 100% stress free" and "Collapsing from stress." I like to live right in the middle. :)
ReplyDeleteLaure--Linda said it well--that space in the middle between stress free and collapsing from stress is the sweet spot.
ReplyDelete