As expected, I am getting busier with work. When I got up today, I felt a bit overwhelmed. “I have a lot of work to do. How can I find time to write my blog article?” In the shower, I thought of the Pomodoro Technique that I learned from many self-help books. It is a time management technique that uses a timer to set time blocks for each of our tasks. The goal is to complete a task within the set timeframe. I decided to set two hours for each of my tasks. This technique helped put me at ease and focus my full attention on my tasks. In the end, I completed each task, including writing a blog article, in two hours.

The biggest change that One Thing for Me a Day has made in my life is that I can get started, regardless of my level of motivation, physical condition, or emotional state. Although I felt heavy this morning, I still meditated and rode a stationary bike. Once I got on the bike, I continued for 30 minutes. The exercise led me to shower, and the shower awakened my body and mind. In his book, “How to Be an Imperfectionist,” Stephen Guise, one of my biggest inspirations, emphasizes the power of action over thinking. Action changes our feelings, much more than thinking does.

Stephen Guise suggests that perfectionism pulls us back and stunts our growth by causing anxiety and self-doubt and preventing us from starting. On the other hand, imperfectionism nudges us to get started by switching focus from results to process. I have long pursued the unattainable dream of a perfectionist. It is a common tendency among Korean people. In Korean culture, there are core social values known as “saving face” and “losing face.” We are taught to look our best at all times. We lose face when we make mistakes. And we are more likely to be criticized for mistakes than praised for accomplishments.

I was often afraid to try something new because I didn’t know if I could do well or not. However, to grow and achieve goals, we need to start and then see what happens! When we are trying anything new or pursuing new goals, there is no way to know what is going to happen. Actually, that is the fun of life. The flip-side of uncertainty is possibility. Stephen Guise also suggests that our action is driven by the battle between fear and desire. If fear stumps desire, we procrastinate. His secret to overcoming fear and procrastination is the binary mindset, along with small goals. Rate your action with only two numbers, 0 or 1. If you did, it’s a 1 (success). If you didn’t, it’s a 0 (fail). As long as you take action, you win.

When I first started my One Thing for Me a Day project, I set super-easy goals, as inspired by Stephen Guise’s Mini Habits. My only goal was to do just one thing for me a day. However, the low pressure freed me from perfectionism, leading me to do much more. I thought I would write only a few sentences on my Facebook page to keep track of my daily action(s), but I am writing one blog article every day in Korean and English. I also draw an image to go with my article. Because of the fear of being not good enough, I hesitated to draw again after I stopped drawing almost 20 years ago. Now, I write and draw every day. I will continue and see what happens!

Please like my page and find your own inspiration: https://www.facebook.com/onethingformeaday/