Calendars are Cool!

Melissa R. Rich, LMFT, Ph.D.

I realize that everyone is not as uber organized as I am (or as I try to be). I suppose it also goes to being somewhat nerdy as well, but when I discovered how to color code the calendar in my phone it was a very happy day for me!

Suddenly I could see all the events I had going on at a glance AND – what kind of events they were. Purple for personal, green for work, blue for teaching, etc. I’m such a visual learner that I was literally doing my happy dance!

This was especially helpful for me because there is SO MUCH going on that it’s easy to either lose track completely or get overwhelmed, throw my hands up and want to quit. My calendars (2 computers, an ipad and 2 iphones) really keep everything organized.

I’m reading an interesting book on how to cope with the onslaught on information we all deal with regularly and thought it might be helpful to you. The title is, Your Brain at Work, by David Rock. No, I don’t get a commission for recommending it – sadly! But I’ve found the information in it relevant, easy to understand and helpful. You might as well.

Anyway, back to calendars and organization. I find that a lot of people have really good intentions but things just get away from them. I hear things like these from clients on a regular basis.

The couple who hasn’t had a date night in 8 months
The professional woman who loves her sister but hasn’t had lunch with her in 6 weeks
The executive who loves golf but hasn’t been able to play in 3 months – because there’s always some type of crisis going on

Here’s the thing. Most of us wait for the magic, perfect time to do things. Guess what? It doesn’t exist.

So we have to MAKE time to do the things that matter to us. A great way to do that is very simple – put them on your calendar (and check your calendar regularly). That not only gives the events some weight and importance, it relieves our brains by having one less thing to try and remember.

This is a good thing because our brains are already pretty overloaded as it is. So next time you tell yourself that you need to “get around” to doing something, take it a step further. Pick a date and time and put it in your calendar.

Yes, something could still come up, but you’ve greatly increased your chances of actually connecting with your friends and family, going to that concert or trying that new restaurant. I think David Rock would approve.