The Sunday Paper

What a difference time makes.  11 months, 46 weeks, 322 days, 7,728 hours, and 463,680 minutes can be the difference of 43 pounds.  This represents a few weeks after turning 51 years old to a few days before turning 52.  This time is the difference between a size 14 and a size 6.  More importantly, this represents someone who felt lost to someone who feels found.  Perhaps a year wiser; you can’t stop time, or aging, but you can control what you do with the time you have.

If you’ve worked with me, at any point over the years, you’ll know that I’m an avid time management freak.  I used to haul my Franklin Planner around, like it was the Bible, carefully plotting the tasks for each day.  Each event received an “A-B-C” priority and I would check each item off upon completion.  Over the years I stopped using that planning system because it turned into a glorified “to do” list.  Electronic methods took over but I’m still a sucker for a great monthly planner, with a beautiful floral cover, to check off days, and track important events.  I no longer use an official planner for day to day stuff  but recently I discovered a new time management tool.  It doesn’t involve an expensive fancy system, with a leather binder, and costly accessories.  This planning system is simply one single plain white sheet of paper each Sunday.

I just recently learned of this new time management method and am now trying to put it into practice in my own life.  This journey is causing me to learn new things every week.  I know this came across my path for a reason, and at a perfect time.  There’s a reason why and I know it’s to help me continue on this journey.  This tool is to help move into the next phase of my life for what God has in store.  I believe this is the vehicle that will help guide me there.  I want to share what I’ve learned in hopes that it may help guide you on your pathway of life too. 

This concept comes from a 90 year old multi-billionaire named Conrad.  I don’t know Conrad’s last name, but he’s from Fort Lauderdale, and extremely successful.  Darren Hardy, author of “The Compound Effect,” shared this story in a talk I heard recently.  Darren met Conrad at a boat show in Fort Lauderdale.  I’m sure it was more like a fancy yacht show.  Darren was fascinated to learn Conrad was coming out of retirement to step back in to his family business.  He said his son was working hard, but lost focus on the right things, and needed his guidance.  In the midst of their discussion, Conrad then shared his simple time management philosophy to make sure you stay focused on the right things.  Conrad said this is his method of living out his God given purpose in life.  It all starts with the Sunday paper.  

All you need is a piece of plain white paper.  Write the words, “Divine Purpose” at the top of the page.  Your divine purpose represents your mission and your vision for your life.  Put a big cross in the middle of the page.  Add the numbers into each of the squares, 1, 2, and 3.  In the last quadrant write the word “misc.”  Conrad explains that the first three quadrants represent the Holy Trinity, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The three Holy Trinity boxes represent your top three priorities.  These are to be the top three goals that are driven by your divine purpose.  Your divine purpose is what God is called you to do in your life.  This is utilizing your God given talents and gifts.  The three boxes, within the Holy Trinity section circled below, represents the top three goals that will lead you there.  The “Misc.” box represents what Conrad calls, “the devil’s vortex.”

Completing your top three goals for the week will drive you to your divine purpose and vision.  Each Sunday you write out your paper and think of every single activity you need to do for the upcoming week.  This is ultimately your “to do” list.  You place each item into the appropriate quadrant of the cross.  The “Misc.” box, or devil’s vortex, are all of those items, that you may need to do, but are not driving you in the direction of any of your top three goals.  This is where we lose focus.  We easily get wrapped up into checking things off of a simple “to do” list that’s not progressing us towards our true goals, and dreams.  That’s why Conrad calls it the devil’s vortex.  He said it’s so easy to get sucked into this vortex without realizing it.  If all of what you do ends up in this section, you’ll lose focus.  You’ll work hard at the wrong things and not get to what you need to do.  Conrad said you can be faked out and easily seduced by all the wrong things.  Conrad warns to not be overcome by evil, but to be overcome by good.  Focus on what you need to do in the right boxes.  This is to prevent being super busy and working hard, but not focused on the top three that will really drive you to your divine purpose in life.  

Conrad says that writing all of this down each Sunday gets all of your thoughts down on paper and reduces anxiety for the week ahead.  It helps to eliminate feeling overwhelmed.  You’re writing your “to-do” list for the week, but as you do, you are allocating each item to either one of the top three goals, or to the misc. box.  This naturally prioritizes what you are doing.  When you do this you’ll realize most of what you do falls into the misc. section instead of making progress on your divine purpose.  You’ll also realize where you are neglecting your goals.  It becomes easy to see how we lose focus.  This tool is a way to visually see how you can move your goals forward, by prioritizing your productive focus, and not spend all of your time in the misc. quadrant.  He went on to share his top three secrets to success in life.  They say with age comes wisdom.  I feel Conrad is an extremely wise and successful man for a reason.

Conrad’s Secrets

Secret #1:  Sacred Demand
Luke 12:48 says, "From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded." God gave each of us gifts.  Honor your gifts.   Go after big goals for the rewards and impact are exponentially greater.  You can use your life and talents for little or big things.  It’s a sin against your Creator to use the gifts from God for little things.  Answer your sacred demand. 

Secret #2:  Whole Heart Devotion
Matthew 6:24, "No one can serve two masters.  Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and money."  Only do one thing every day.  Focus solely on one priority in a given day.  Miracles are created with giving one priority your whole heart devotion.  The Sunday paper gets everything out of your head and identifies your top priorities.  You can clearly see what matters the most.  Pick one a day.  Give it single minded, single focus, and whole hearted devotion.  There is massive power in this kind of focus and it produces a greater progress to what God has called for you to do.

Secret #3:  Genesis Deadline
Conrad said, “Look, God created heaven and earth and in 6 days.  I think to set an example.”  Conrad feels we should expect a lot more of ourselves.   He feels we should set unreasonable deadlines because the pressure requires more focus to step up and grow.  You will be amazed at what you can get done in a lot less time.  We have that kind of creative power when we are focused on the right things.  We have amazing capabilities when we are focused on what we are called to do, what we are passionate about, and what is tied to our divine purpose.  Set unreasonable deadlines, not because they are unreasonable, but because it forces you to rise up to the challenge.  We are capable of way more than we realize. 

I just started implementing the Sunday paper time management system.  It’s hard to stay out of the devil’s vortex.  I hope to get better at this but I feel it’s helping to bring clarity.  Clarity is power.  Clarity is confidence.  Clarity is focus in a single direction.  This tool will help you face each week with unwavering confidence knowing you are doing the right things and moving your life in the direction God wants for you.  Steve Jobs said, “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”  Technically we aren’t managing time, we are managing ourselves within the same 24 hours a day that we all have.  If we stay focused on our holy trinity priority boxes, we’ll be focused on the life we are supposed to live.  Henry David Thoreau asks, “It’s not enough to be busy, so are ants.  The question is, what are we busy about?”

Results for the week:  - 0.0 lbs lost; Total Lost: 43

D.O.W. = 329

Starting weight:  182.0; Current weight: 139.0