stress reduction

Reflecting on the Labyrinth
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Reflecting on the Labyrinth

I started my vacation journey with the expressed goal of relaxing, resting and reflecting.  Little did I know that outside events and internal viruses would so dramatically change my point of view.

It all started at the airport in Denver, when shortly before our departure, I perused Facebook and was shocked to learn to that a fellow Toastmaster had died the night before, within an hour of giving a speech.  Wow…  I had no words.

 


Retrospectives have been a big focus for me these past weeks as I’ve been writing and speaking on the topic since the beginning of the year.  Now, as I am cooped up in a desert hotel with the humbling head cold, I am further forced to slow down and reflect on life’s crazy path, journey or maze, depending on your perspective.

I am intentionally trying to avoid reading the news updates from the outside world but it is difficult to shield myself from the bizarre and unsettling stories about crazy killing Uber drivers and an egomaniac billionaire who may win a nomination for president of the United States.  The calls to fasten my seat belt on this nauseating narrative have caused me to want to curl into the fetal position and never check Facebook or CNN again.

A positive ray of hope entered my sheltered yet wounded psyche yesterday when I came across a poem while sitting in a waiting room.  It was written by Caroline Adams and started with ” Your Life is a sacred journey”.  It’s powerful message spoke to me about change, growth, discovery and transformation.  It encouraged me to expand my vision on what is possible and to see clearly and deeply.

Caroline’s words kindly comforted me as she reminded me that I am on a Path- exactly where I am meant to be right now.  And from here, I can only go forward. Shaping my life story into a magnificent tale……


And now I sit, I write and I reflect.  I am eager to get out of my room and go explore the labyrinth that’s down the sandy path in this beautiful desert. I am ready to experience the joy of life more fully now that I am again reminded that nothing lasts forever and every moment is a gift.

I am reminded that Life is a sacred journey and should never be taken for granted, no matter how badly we feel.  Nothing lasts forever. Not the high, not the low, not the happy, not the sad.  The Labyrinth of Life just keeps going until it doesn’t.  I’m going enjoy and appreciate it now while I can.

Resolutions, Reviews and Retrospectives
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Resolutions, Reviews and Retrospectives

As a matter of course, I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions until at least February and this year, I have not made any.

Since I am a Scrum Master striving to lead an Agile Life, I’ve started planning and living my life in 2 week iteration (sprints) and am doing my first Sprint Review and Retrospective today. It is so much easier to set and achieve goals in a short 2-3 week period rather than the whole year. Plus it makes me very happy and excited to move my yellow sticky note user stories from the “In Progress” to the “Done” column (I know I am a total geek. See my article on Confessions of a Dashboard Junkie for further proof).

It is satisfying to have rapid feedback and visualization on the completion of your small, bite-sized chunk goals (user stories) and it is important to do a thorough review of the Sprint Board at the end of each iteration to determine what is still In Progress and/or what is not started in the To Do column.

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In the Retrospective, you can reflect on what you were able to complete and why, as well as what prevented you from starting or finishing a user story. Were there obstacles or unforeseen circumstances that interfered with you completing all your goals or did you simply procrastinate? Be brutally honest with yourself and strive to improve your process in the next sprint which starts tomorrow.

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The outcome of your Retrospective is a mini New Sprint Resolution and provides input to your next Sprint Plan.  This is why I don’t need New Year’s Resolutions anymore!

The Sprint Plan is done on the 1st day of the sprint and includes all of the user stories (goals) you want to complete in the next time period. It is meant to be a realistic picture of what you commit to getting done based on your understanding of the size and scope of the various items.

Living an Agile Life is rewarding, effective and less stressful than making huge blanket resolutions on some arbitrary date at the beginning of the year. Besides, your goals for the time period of Jan. 1-15 will probably be very different than your goals for Sep. 15-30. Conducting your Reviews and Retrospectives every 2 weeks will help you quickly analyze and adjust your life plans and goals as needed plus you will get so much more accomplished than if you didn’t track and plan with your Sprint board.

So here’s a toast to happy and healthy Sprint Reviews and Retrospectives!

May the Agile force be with you.

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Hedgehogs, Play-Doh and Crayons: A Return to Adult Creativity

There’s been a plethora of articles on the rising popularity of adult coloring books lately and this particular one caught my attention and inspired me to expand on the idea and share with you my recent adventures in the world of coloring, art and sculpting with a hedgehog named Ernie.

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The answer to the question posed in the article referenced above was simple for me since it is what prompted me to add color to Mandalas back in 2006. Why are jaded adults buying stacks of coloring books? For me and many of my friends, it is for Insight, Healing and Self-Expression. Coloring is calming and peaceful and when small, furry friends like Ernie are included, it is just plain fun!

How else can we explain that last month, 8 of the 20 top selling books on Amazon were  coloring books designed for adults?  Here’s an interesting WSJ article that further explores these trends.

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This new phenomena is also helping to connect us in a real, live and tangible way. Public libraries are offering spaces to host adult coloring with sessions titled “Stress Relief through Doodling” and a wellness coach in San Diego hosts “Color Yourself Calm” sessions in her home (active cell phones not allowed).

Wow, little did I know that 10 years ago when I invited some girlfriends over for a bottle of wine, a box of Crayolas and a Mandala coloring book, we would be the vanguard of the modern healing-through-art (and wine) movement.

As our collective blood pressure and cortisol levels have climbed and impacted our health and well being, escape from the stress of our frantic, always-on world of social media is alluring. These activities give us permission to concentrate and focus on something for more than a minute- without constant digital interruptions. Art and creative expressions allows a different part of our brain to be stimulated and exercised and for me, it calms like a cool cloth on itchy eyes. Coloring fosters creativity, new ideas and insights that posting on Facebook or reading Tweets just doesn’t do.

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On a more pure and simple level, these activities tap into childhood joy and give us pleasure. For many, just the smell of Play-Doh brings forth vivid memories of happy and youthful creations. I smile when I swish it through my fingers!

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Another positive outcome of painting, coloring and sculpting is the ability to produce some more tangible and lasting- something more than 1s and 0s of the digital world. Something you can touch with your skin and see without the need for an electronic glass screen or display. A lasting object you can send in the mail (via the Postal service) as a gift to a friend or family member. Our art is something we can proudly post on the refrigerator at home or in your cubical at work. It gives us a sense of accomplishment, finishing something that will last and is comforting in our age of fleeting Snapchat images and endless streams of 140 character Twitter posts.

So, why is Ernie the hedgehog so popular? For many of the same reasons as the popularity of the adult coloring, he makes people smiles and encourages child-like creativity, happiness and joy. Plus he is a great model in my photos!

So foster your creativity with a child-like zeal and enjoy the happy and calming effects.  Added bonus:  you just might make yourself and others break out in a hug smile- just like Ernie does.

Cheers!

Ernieinaglass