It was in January 2021 when I listened to an interview. The content is still present in my mind. I was following the interview while lifting up dumbbells in my room. I had just resumed training for building up muscles again. Basically it was not my intention to spend my time with only one single activity. So usually I was either listening to music or to an interview while doing exercises.
On the one hand it was exhausting. Doing activities in terms of personal fitness normally is related to switching the mind off. However as I was following the interview in a very focused manner I was additionally demanding my mind apart from demanding my body. So on the other hand it felt good. The feeling occurred that I was acting effectively. I was not wasting my time. I was doing something beneficial for my body AND for my mind.
The completer and the marketer
The interview dealt with a person who had traveled to China by bicycle. He went on this trip together with a friend. Actually there are two important things which I still remember from that interview. The first thing is that he mentioned that if he had conducted the trip by his own probably he would not have arrived in China. He then mentioned that if his friend had conducted the trip by his own the friend would have arrived in China however no one would have noticed about it.
In this context it must be mentioned that the trip was promoted medially. The trip was promoted that effectively that even Ashton Kutcher got aware and shared a post on his social media accounts.
That being said it seems that the person who was interviewed acted as the driving force in terms of the marketing activities while on the other hand his friend became the driving force in order to complete the trip. The connection of these two core capabilities reminds me of the phrase which I recently dropped over in „The Art of the Start 2.0*“. Guy Kawasaki dropped the statement that it was Steve Wozniak building the iPhone however it was Steve Jobs selling it. As a conclusion it seems that whenever launching a product or a service or going on a bicycle trip to China there are at least two essential requirements: One focus on completing it (the product, the service or the trip) and one focus on promoting it successfully.
Keeping the focus
But the more remarkable statement was dropped later in that interview. The moderator and the guest started talking about planning and related time frames. In this relation the person who was interviewed mentioned that generally he is primarily focusing on a time frame of three months. This is primarily related to the completion of tasks. At the beginning of a new time frame he sends himself an email containing a specific goal which he intends to achieve within the next tree months. The email is configured in that way that after three months the email will pop up in his inbox. The intention of that email is to remind him if he has focused on achieving his goal.
One year is simply too long
In terms of the email I considered that as an interesting approach. But actually I´m more impressed by focusing on the time frame of three months in general. That´s mainly driven by the fact that I have experienced difficulties when I was required to make my plans for the next year. The point is that I have recognized that I´m simply not able to overview a time frame of one year. I´m a negative example in terms of the following common phrase: Many people underestimate what they can do in one single day but overestimate what the can do in one year.
That phrase has gathered my attention for several times during the recent years. It seems that if I continue focusing on the time frame of one year I will not be able to overcome my obstacle of inefficient planning. The point is that at the beginning of a new year the time frame of one year appears so long. Then suddenly the end of the year is near and I recognize telling to myself: Oh, wow, that year was really short. You did not even complete 50% of what you had planned in the beginning.
Implementing the time frame of three months
So since I was made aware of that hint concerning the time frame of three months I´m trying to change my focus. It´s not easy. I raised up with that one year time frame in my mind. It´s still very present. I recognized that it takes effort to overcome it. Additionally I´m being distracted by social situations such as public holidays. For example, in the past it has occurred that during summer people have asked me what I had planned for New Year´s Eve. In SUMMER. That made me recognize that if I´m required to plan for more than six months I´m losing my current focus.
That´s why going forward it will be important to further implement the time frame of three months as part of my planning. The conclusion will be to focus on one major task which I want to complete within these three months. If I manage that successfully at the end of the year I will have achieved at least four goals. That sounds a lot. Sounds satisfactory.
Flag by flag
But starting with four goals directly at the beginning of the year leads to an overwhelming amount of tasks which needs to be completed. In this case my focus will constantly alternate between four different directions. By doing so I will feel like a football out on the field which is being blown around by the wind by not reaching any of the four corner flags.
So it seems to be more efficient to capture one corner flag first. Then I can run to the next corner flag in a straight manner. It´s not that difficult to go there as on a football field there is a clear white line which leads to the next corner flag. I can simply follow that line. So after I have reached the second corner flag I will repeat running for two times again. Just by simply following that clear white line. After all I will have captured all of the four corner flags. I will achieve all of my goals which I have set for myself by simply following that approach. Flag by flag.
Settling down for the duration of three months
In addition to that I recognized that the time frame of three months is also applicable when it comes to another aspect in my life. I have experienced that the duration of three months is my preferred time frame to stay at another place. Another city. As part of another country. It´s that time frame which allows me to deep dive into the local culture and to strengthen my connections. It´s that time frame which allows me to detect changes related to my environment. These kind of changes refer to e. g. seasonal weather effects or holiday season vs. no holiday season. Additionally it partially refers to changes within the local economy and in terms of the political system. This means that by staying at one place for the duration of three months I´m offered the opportunity to obtain a detailed and comprehensive understanding of that specific environment.
Overcoming obstacles
I kept thinking about why at least three months are required in order to obtain that more profound understanding. Several factors popped up in my mind. To mention three of them, arriving at a new place requires time in terms of overcoming jet lag experiences, acclimatization and creating habits. Creating habits refers to e. g. finding a place to stay and when and where to have breakfast, lunch and dinner. Finding an appropriate place for having a short walk. Knowing what kind of things to buy at which supermarket. Identifying the areas where I feel more comfortable when compared to other areas.
While jet lag can be fully overcome after one week, acclimatization will usually be completed after two weeks. However creating habits can take three or four weeks. As a conclusion my perception in terms of that place I´m staying will significantly change after the duration of four weeks. Going to Seoul for three weeks or spending four weeks in Los Angeles? Not working for me.
The point is that after four weeks (meaning that after I have completed the „obstacles“ mentioned above) all of the things which I discovered as „new“ at the time when I arrived will not be new anymore. After four weeks I´m used to the food. I´m used to the weather. I´m used to the traffic. From now on I have free capacities in order to experience my environment in the same manner as I experience my home place. When I´m at my home place I´m not being faced with the obstacles mentioned above. So first I have to overcome these obstacles until I can experience deeper connectedness.
Holy words
When it comes to planning I´m glad that I have discovered an alternative approach rather than the one year time frame. It appears that focusing on the time frame of three months is more in line with my skills in terms of organizing and completing tasks. It´s more in line with my natural behavior. By sticking to the time frame of three months it´s easier to focus as it requires less energy to put effort on a specific topic for three months rather than one year. Why stretch out a task for one year if it can be completed within three months?
Any thoughts on this can be sent privately to send@realthoughts.me or publicly via the comment function below
Martin
*Affiliate-Link