I want to lead an intentional life. I want to decide what I want to do and then do it. It doesn’t always happen. Sometimes, I am just too ambitious and expect to do way more than is reasonable. Other times I get distracted.
Being a “learner” usually works out well for me, but I can get in my own way. My interests and curiosity are frequently piqued. I find that there are two categories of information out there, what my teacher Danny Iny describes as “just in case” and “just in time.”
“Just in case” learning is a mix of general knowledge and entertainment. I do it through newspapers, magazines, and particularly emails. Many emails I receive project an urgency to act right now to take advantage of an offer. I read the material, in part, because who knows when I might need it in the future.
Many times, “just in case” learning is fine. It satisfies my curiosity. But there are two downsides to it. Unless I am careful to schedule my time, random learning can be very disruptive when I need or want to be productive. It can have a reactive feeling to it. Second, I gradually forget this interesting information unless I have an amazing storage and retrieval system for it.
The other type of learning, “just in time,” is quite different. It means going out and getting information that I need when I need it. It is proactive because I initiate that action. This learning type can be short-term, like looking something up on Google, or part of a long-term project, like going to college with a specific career focus.
In his 1989 book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Stephen Covey talks about evaluating tasks by their urgency and importance. The biggest mistake people make is to choose urgent but unimportant tasks to work on, instead of the nonurgent but important ones.
Like most people I know, I receive a growing number of emails every day. I find myself spending more and more time each day pursuing information that I never knew I needed – and probably don’t.
I wake up in the morning eager to pursue and complete the tasks that I’ve carefully chosen for myself. But just let me check my email first to see if anything important needs my attention. I often find something that catches my attention, and down a rabbit hole I go.