What do you do with 15 minutes?

I recently read a blog post from Lorne Rubis, The Last 15 Minutes of Anything, discussing how important it is not giving up and giving it your all. One of the key points, is “Learning how to finish is something we can learn and practice“. Mr. Rubis is consistently a motivator, a leading example of work ethic, attempting work/life balance and how to truly practice your values at work and in life. This particular blog entry caught my attention for a couple of reasons:

1. I have incorporated a 15 minute minimum rule into my daily life for working on my writing. I use a technique I learned from Around The Writer’s Block (http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B011MCYQ4A). Basically, you follow a simple promise to yourself: have 15 minutes a day at least of product time. Product time can include research, editing, organizing, etc. including of course, writing itself. Product time (paraphrased in my own words) is anything that moves your writing forward. This is why it includes other things besides strictly writing. Since I’ve adopted this mentality, it’s helped me stop the time wasters of beating myself up for not creating something new and freed my creative juices to create more writing than I’ve produced in years!
2. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ME/FM all can have a drastic effect on what you can do in 15 minutes.

I  still remember the first time I had about 15 minutes of feeling symptom-free. I was approximately 19 years old and had literally been in bed for years. Attempting yet another thing to ease my symptoms, I was following a new regimen of high fiber cookies and an herbal tonic from a company called Lifestyles. At that time, it was the first time something made a difference.* Like a drug, that first high I experienced when I felt like I did before I got sick, was inspiring. Of course, it did not last, but I still actively seek that next high where I can feel like a “regular” person again, no fever, no aches, no nausea, just alive!

*In the long run, the products helped for a year or two and then I resumed a tolerable level of symptoms that remained the same for several years no matter what I tried. I use my own way of eating high protein, vegetables and low carbohydrates plus rest and moderate exercise to keep my symptoms in check.

That 15 minutes meant the world to me. What did I do? I actually just enjoyed the moment. I felt my body. I listened to my breath. I relished the moment.

Today, my world is vastly different. I work at a day job that needs at least 7.25 hours of my attention (usually more!) where I need to be engaged, intelligent and aware of my team, my goals, corporate objectives, etc., etc. I often find myself utilizing 15 minute increments to break the work down. I use this to help accomplish what I need to in the day/week/month but also to put things into smaller chunks. If i am experiencing a brain fog moment, I use a few techniques to overcome this:

• Stand up – take a breath.
• Walk for a few minutes.
• Clean up old e-mails (that do not need mental thought to process)
• Speak to a colleague.

15 minutes can mean finalizing a last section of a project, writing a blog entry when I am at home, or helping build a better relationship with a fellow team member. A lot can be accomplished in 15 minutes! Mr. Rubis’ blog refers to the last 15 minutes, but with CFS, that last 15 minutes can be at 10 am or 10 pm, depending on the day.

Take 15 minutes at a time – what can you do in 15 minutes to make your life better?

Please share your comments below!