Where Does The Time Go ?

It's basically August now.

 

In 2013 ... which means it's almost 2014.

 

School starts tomorrow for 4 of my kids.

 

Next year I will have a child in high school!

 

Summer is over, for all intents and purposes.

Today at work my "empty agenda" quickly filled up with meetings and conversations and assorted busy work.  All of a sudden I looked up and it was 3:30pm.  The day was nearly over.

My landscaping project(s) at home are fast approaching their overall deadlines.

In so many different areas, I feel time just slipping away at a breakneck pace.  I am not sure why this is.  My time is being replaced with memories and experiences, but it just seems to move so fast.


Song Of The Day:
Nothing else like music takes me back to a time when minutes, hours, days, weeks, and months didn't disappear as swiftly.  One of my classic favorite time has gone so quickly songs is "Endless Summer Nights" by Richard Marx.  I am grateful for the memories I have collected in exchange for my minutes and hours, but I do sometimes find myself pining for long, lazy nights.

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How Important Is Planning ? Part 2

Often, there are many steps that need to be taken on a project.  But how do you know what comes first if you don't stop to think about the plan?  This is why there are people designated to be Project Managers.  You may have found yourself questioning why someone gets paid money to simply organize the order of things that needs to be done.  The thought "This person isn't even doing any work!" may have crossed your mind.  Allow me to defend this person for a moment, using a recent project that I probably should have actually hired someone to "manage."

Late last year my wife and I discussed, at great length, our plans to redo our landscaping this year.  The list of 4-5 projects we wanted to complete by the end of summer continued to expand with every discussion.  I soon realized that I needed to outline these various "major" projects so that I would not forget them.  Upon writing them down, I came to the further realization that I needed to organize these projects because there are stages of progression and I would need to follow a certain order ... unless I wanted to move rocks and dirt multiple times.  Only those who have never moved rocks or dirt could find this unimportant!

Ultimately, the list of about 8 "major" projects ballooned out to about 75-100 tasks, ranging from 2-10 hours of work each.  Sadly, that list (and those estimated times to complete them) has expanded further as each "major" project nears completion.  But, in defense of project management, the hours invested in outlining the initial plan have certainly saved literally weeks of work.
Planning has also allowed me to accept that our backyard will be a next year project (barring some minor miracle in the front yard in the coming 4-6 weeks).  For those who know me, this could have been a devastating blow to my psyche, but planning allowed me to take it in stride.


Song Of The Day:    
So the song that came to mind is "Your Move" because of the chess theme where you need to be thinking a few moves ahead to win.  There is a need for strategy when managing a large project and if you're not careful you could literally paint yourself into a corner.
The version above is by the great band Yes, but The Duke's Men of Yale recently did an a capella version of the song that I like much more.  Sadly, it is not on youtube (yet).  I plan to remedy that travesty once these yard projects are done.

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Is That The Only Time ?

Today I helped my brother-in-law with some yardwork.  I've got my own yard projects to take care of, but he specifically wanted my help with rolling sod, since I have LOTS of experience in that area.

Why is he replacing his sod and rocks and such?  Because they are trying to sell their house of course.  Isn't that just about the ONLY TIME people work extra hard to have a nice-looking yard?!

Obviously my own landscaping projects are not related to the sale of our home (I'm NOT moving again!  Ask my wife!), but I believe I am in the very small minority in this way.  My projects are for my own satisfaction and enjoyment, rather than being intended to encourage a potential homeowner to offer to buy my house.

So, why do we wait?

I know it's a lot of work and most of us don't like hard work.  But it seems silly to me that the only time yards look especially nice is when you're selling or just bought the home.


Song Of The Day:
Today's song came across my radar while listening to Pandora radio on my iPad.  "The Little Things" by Carlos Bertonatti is a catchy little tune and I think it fits well with this post.  We skip over almost all the 'little things' until we're trying to sell our homes, and then they are finally 'big' enough to justify our spending time on them.  We should treat ourselves better than this, because don't we deserve nice-looking yards and homes?!

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Are You Working Hard Or Hardly Working ?

I have heard it said many times over "Find something you love to do and somebody to pay you to do IT and you'll never work a day in your life."

I suppose that could be true and I'll be sure to let you know if I ever prove that theory ... but I can safely say that 'working hard' is a phrase I try to use sparingly and only in the right circumstances.

Here's an example:
 - Yesterday (Monday, my day off) I spent about 8 hours 'working hard' outside on my never-ending landscape remodeling project.  I moved (lifted, loaded, pushed, unloaded, and placed) at least a literal ton of rocks.  I dug out a trench for one downspout.  I cleared about 10 wheelbarrows of rock/dirt/weed-filled stuff from the front and side yards.  I laid and positioned and eventually trimmed the excess landscaping fabric in our small front easement.

I.  Worked.  HARD.

 - Today (Tuesday, a.k.a. my 'Monday' at work) I spent 9+ hours hardly working.  Oh sure I attended two meetings, facilitated three coaching sessions, met with my boss, met with my new 'loan-in' Supervisor (who I am mentoring), cleared at least 50 emails, rescheduled two other meetings, and checked in with most of my team members.  But that wasn't "hard" and it wasn't necessarily "work."  I was doing something all day long, but by comparison to yesterday I was hardly working.

So I'll have to think for a little while the next time before responding to some acquaintance who asks me this cheesy blog post title question.  I'm not sure which answer is more preferred anymore.

Song Of The Day:
I can think of no more fitting song than "Bang On The Drum All Day" which I guarantee you have heard before.  But did you know who did this song?  Well I didn't.  His name is Todd Rundgren.  Now you know.  You're welcome (special shout out to YouTube for the info).  :)

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How Do You Manage Such A BIG Project ?

I've always felt pretty good at outlining plans and goals to get things done.  I have often prided myself on the ability to see the most logical starting point, while also keeping one eye on the finish line.  It is usually no big deal for me to write out a list (in order) of things to be done as related to a specific project.

I have recently met my "Mount Everest"
when it comes to project management.



Our lot has over 11,000 sq. ft. to "update" ... sigh.

My wife and I have been in our current house for three full years now, and late last summer we decided that it was high time to update the landscaping in our yard(s) - front, side, back.  Initial talks about what we wanted it to look like were fun and creative.  All things seemed possible and the sky was the limit.  Later, I began to outline the smaller "stages" of this large project.  Even that seemed full of promise and hope and energy.  The first deadline was to be completed by the end of February, 2013.

And this is where I realized the height of this "hill" I was planning to climb.  It is not just the supplies we need to purchase, or the money we will need to spend, or the equipment we will need to rent, or even the hours we need to invest in physical labor to move rocks, remove dead sod and weeds, and install edging, garden boxes, etc.  It IS the staging of when to do what and in what order do the various tasks need to be completed that is driving me bonkers.  For the first time ever, I am confounded when it comes to visualizing what action needs to come 1st, 23rd, or 104th.

I am still confident that this project will get done, on time, under budget, and without too many tears shed.  But I already have newfound respect for landscape architects and project managers.  I tip my hat to you ladies and gentlemen.

Song Of The Day:

As you can see in the photo above, our yard has a bizarre triangle shape (at least the front part does anyway).  I also am working to create a new order for our project plan.  Thus we can plainly see that there was no other choice for the song today than "Bizarre Love Triangle" by New Order.
Oh come on!  That's a pretty good tie in!  :)

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