TSA #21 – Remove Distractions

Apr 9, 2012 by Ben

So I’m sitting here in jury duty today.  I’ve already missed being called for the first group and hope to be dismissed soon.  I am thankful the courthouse now has Wifi, even though they make you watch the cheesy 70′s video about civic duty before giving you the password.

But it’s in these nice downtimes that we have a few minutes to make some small improvements that can make a big difference in your life.

For this week your Truly Simple Action is to remove distractions from your life.  Specifically we are going to remove the unnecessary notifications you receive daily on your smart phone.

I am the first to admit that I am fully addicted to my iPhone. It is an amazing device that allows me to get a lot done throughout the done both professionally and just for fun listening to music or running with my Nike app etc.  That said I am cognizant (or trying to be) of the time I spend on the phone and trying not to spend too much time on it or have it out when I am spending time with family or friends.

One thing I have done is to remove all of the notification messages and sounds so its not beeping or buzzing at me all throughout the day.  I also turned off push notifications for email, so it only checks email when I want to check email.  My iPhone works for me, I don’t work for it.

I only receive notifications when there is a text message or a phone call.  It is a phone after all.  Everything else is turned off.  I don’t get pop ups or noises buzzing at me for emails, my turn on words with friends, a new message from ebay etc.  I still play words with friends and I still check my email, but I do it when I’m ready to check email or play words with friends and that is the difference.

My phone can stay silent in my pocket and be there when I need it, not when it thinks I need it.

To adjust your notifications on the iPhone, simply click on Settings and go to Notifications and turn all of that stuff off.  You can select per app what notifications you want to receive and how to receive them.  I recommend just turning them all off.  You can still access all the apps and the information within the same way, it just won’t be bugging you with pop up messages all the time.

Also disable push notifications for your email. To do this go to Settings, then Mail, Contacts and Calendars, then under Fetch New Data, turn Push to off.  Again your email will still be there, but it will only check for new messages when you are ready to check your email.  This will also save your battery life on your phone, so double bonus.

Ben…

TSA = Truly Simple Actions
The goal of the TSA project is to improve your life and help make this world a better place, one simple action at a time.  Take time this week to do this one simple thing.

Previous TSA’s:

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TSA #20 – Play with the Dog

Apr 2, 2012 by Ben

Take a look at your dog right now.  See them looking at you with those eyes that say, “please take me for a walk…pleeeeeeeaaaassseeee!!”

You should take them for a walk.  You should play with them.  You should take 10 minutes out of your day and just get on the floor and pet their belly.

We recently house/dog sat for a friend of ours who lives downtown.  They live in a very nice apartment right downtown so its fun to walk everywhere. What is not fun is having to take the dog out late at night or early in the morning to do their business.  I have never been so thankful for our doggie door back home.  We brought our small little dog down with us and he had a great time playing with the new dog and we took them for walks all over downtown.   They had a great time and we enjoyed taking them out, even though we were sort of forced to being in an upstairs apartment.

I try to take my dog out for a walk at least once a day.  I don’t always meet that goal and I can see the dog looking at me with those sad eyes wondering when we are going to play.

Everyone is busy.  Everyone has a million things to do.  Take 10 minutes out of your day and take the dog for a walk, or take them out and throw the ball for them.  It means the world to them and will give you a chance to pause your day and relax as well.  You will both enjoy this time together.

Ben…

TSA = Truly Simple Actions
The goal of the TSA project is to improve your life and help make this world a better place, one simple action at a time.  Take time this week to do this one simple thing.

Previous TSA’s:

Popularity: 1%

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TSA #19 – Read

Mar 26, 2012 by Ben

Another easy Truly Simple Action for you this week.  Read.  Read a book.  Actually read two books.

Get on Amazon or head to the local bookstore, or better yet, head down to your local library and pick out 2 books.  Get one fiction book that is fun to read.   Then also get a non-fiction book about something you want to learn about.

They key here is to turn off the TV and enjoy reading a book.  The extra credit is to not only enjoy reading a good story from a good book, but also pick out a book about something you’ve always wanted to learn about.  Pick out something crazy.  Want to learn how to build a house or race top speed across the salt flats of Utah?  Pick out an interesting book on whatever random topic that you want to learn about.

It’s time to read a book and expand your horizons.

I just finished the Steve Jobs biography and am starting on Tina Fey’s latest book Bossypants.

Got any good book recommendations, please leave a comment below.  I’m always looking for a good book.

Ben…

TSA = Truly Simple Actions
The goal of the TSA project is to improve your life and help make this world a better place, one simple action at a time.  Take time this week to do this one simple thing.

Previous TSA’s:
TSA#1 - Buy a meal for someone who needs it
TSA#2 - Go do something fun
TSA#3 - Enough with the plastic bottles
TSA#4 - Learn something new
TSA#5 - Celebrate Christmas
TSA#6 - Start off the new year with a clean room
TSA#7 - Improve
TSA#8 – Tell someone you love them
TSA#9 – Adopt some grandparents
TSA#10 - Organize your life: Inbox edition
TSA#11 - Try a new local restaurant
TSA#12 – Stop watching one TV show
TSA#13 - Do one thing that needs to be done
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#16 – Drink Water
TSA#17 - Slow the F&*! DownTSA #18 – Play Some Cards

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TSA #18 – Play Some Cards

Mar 19, 2012 by Ben

 Time for another fun TSA this week.  Pick one night this week and invite some friends over to play cards.  Play a game you already know or learn a new one.  My friend Scott taught us pinochle last night and we had a great time laughing and joking as we were making mistakes and trying to learn the many intricacies of the game.  I think I got it, but probably need some practice to figure out the many tricks that comes with years of playing it.

So your Truly Simple Action this week is to play some cards.  Pick one night this week, turn off the TV, and invite some friends over to play some cards.  Also tell me your favorite card game so I can learn a new one.

Ben…

TSA = Truly Simple Actions
The goal of the TSA project is to improve your life and help make this world a better place, one simple action at a time.  Take time this week to do this one simple thing.

Previous TSA’s:
TSA#1 - Buy a meal for someone who needs it
TSA#2 - Go do something fun
TSA#3 - Enough with the plastic bottles
TSA#4 - Learn something new
TSA#5 - Celebrate Christmas
TSA#6 - Start off the new year with a clean room
TSA#7 - Improve
TSA#8 – Tell someone you love them
TSA#9 – Adopt some grandparents
TSA#10 - Organize your life: Inbox edition
TSA#11 - Try a new local restaurant
TSA#12 – Stop watching one TV show
TSA#13 - Do one thing that needs to be done
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#16 – Drink Water
TSA#17 - Slow the F&*! Down

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TSA #17 – Slow the F&*! Down

Mar 15, 2012 by Ben

I meant to post this yesterday but was trying to follow my own advice.  So here it is.  Slow the f&*! down.  Stop doing so much.  Take a moment to stop and breath.

I just got back from back to back shows for work.  The first was GDC up in San Francisco.  I then came home for 10 hours, enough time to do laundry, sleep, kiss my wife, and then leave again to Austin for SXSW.  I got back yesterday and I took the day off to spend some time with my wife. We had grand plans to go to Disneyland, but as I tried to start up the Jeep, the battery was dead.  That was an easy fix, so I set out about geting it done, again rushing to find time to have fun.  Finally we just said we would do Disneyland another day and stayed home and hung out.  I still have a million things to do at home and work from being gone so long, but sometimes you need to slow down and take a break.  We spent a nice day at home, getting some stuff done, but still taking some time to relax.

This is probably one of my biggest areas that I need to work on.  I am always go go go.  I can always squeeze in more projects, more things on my to-do list, one more email while waiting in line somewhere.  I need to constantly remind myself to slow down.  Take a break.  Stop, breath, and let the world turn.

So this week (week’s almost over, sorry), take a moment and stop.  Slow down. Don’t try to do too much. Stop trying to over do it.  Take a moment for yourself and let all of the things you have to do stay where they are.  Take some time for yourself and see how that feels.

Ben…

TSA = Truly Simple Actions
The goal of the TSA project is to improve your life and help make this world a better place, one simple action at a time.  Take time this week to do this one simple thing.

Previous TSA’s:
TSA#1 - Buy a meal for someone who needs it
TSA#2 - Go do something fun
TSA#3 - Enough with the plastic bottles
TSA#4 - Learn something new
TSA#5 - Celebrate Christmas
TSA#6 - Start off the new year with a clean room
TSA#7 - Improve
TSA#8 – Tell someone you love them
TSA#9 – Adopt some grandparents
TSA#10 - Organize your life: Inbox edition
TSA#11 - Try a new local restaurant
TSA#12 – Stop watching one TV show
TSA#13 - Do one thing that needs to be done
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#14 – Make a Mess
TSA#15 – Give Up
TSA#16 – Drink Water

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