What Will You Remember Tomorrow?

March 7, 2022

Process And Routine That Move You Forward = Great Process And Routine

My personal daily routine involves reflection.

Where did I find joy today?
What did I execute well today?
Where did I get frustrated? Why?
What can I execute better?
What can I do differently today than yesterday?

My reflection process helps me look back on my days to find the joy. I can then make a plan to replicate and amplify the joy while minimizing frustration.

I know many of you know that balancing work and kids and life and everything else happening around you can be a daily struggle. That’s why finding the joy is so important.

Sometimes, You Just Need To Let Go And Roll With It – Whatever May Come

Releasing pre-conceived notions of plans and how they should unfold to just allow things to happen without exerting control is sometimes the best answer. The releasing of control and rolling with the proverbial punches removes the friction that creates frustration and stress for me.

We experience “problems” more often than we experience “perfection.” I believe it’s when you give the problems energy that you give them life. By releasing yourself and your energy from the problems – and not trying to control them – you let the problems fade away.

Here’s A Story To Provide An Example…

My house got painted this weekend. On Friday, they primed the house and the painting began Saturday. I was not home when they actually started painting. When I came back a few hours later, there was material progress. But, there was also an issue: the paint appeared to be the wrong color.

The house was supposed to end up light tan, and they were painting it light gray. I stared at it for a bit, trying to figure out if the bright sun was causing it to appear a different color than it actually was. Nope. It was just the wrong paint.

For a moment, this was incredibly frustrating for me. By the time I had gotten home and realized they were using the wrong color paint, they’d already completed a good portion of one side of the house, and they’d already removed tape and plastic from the windows. To fix the color, they would have to start over, retape everything and repaint. And, of course, doing this would extend the duration of the painting project, which meant my windows and doors would be taped up and closed during the week instead of just over the weekend.

My plan had been for the painting project to conclude over the weekend so the week could start cleaned up and fresh on Monday. But, nope. Plan busted. I was very frustrated.

But then I remembered a lesson I’d learned a while back. A simple phrase:

Remember Tomorrow

Okay, these guys had just painted about ⅓ of my house in the wrong color. That’s not ideal. However, there had probably been a breakdown in communications somewhere. It wasn’t going to get better if I just flipped out.

I calmly spoke to the team and walked them through the issue. They saw the obvious problem and said the light gray was the color the “office” had sent them. I showed them the correct color, and they promised to return Monday to correct the issue. They also said they would paint a small section first and color match it before proceeding to a larger section.

Although I had been frustrated, I treated the guys on my property with dignity and respect. I didn’t blame them. I acknowledged the problem and challenged them to find a solution with me.

Stop painting immediately.
Get the right color.
Come back Monday and paint a test section.
Match it up. If it’s good, green light on painting the rest of the house.

In the moment, I remembered tomorrow and it helped me release the frustration and find a positive solution that worked for us all.

The lesson here is applicable at home and, certainly, at work. Whether it's paint at my house, kids or an important Zoom call, the lesson applies.

Days will come and days will go, and with that time passing we will always be able to look back on how we lived out those days.

I believe I am most productive when I can look back and smile with pride on how I acted and behaved – across all areas of my life.