Endorphins

How good is your memory? I have a photographic memory. I don’t have any film, but it is a photographic memory. I was going to upgrade to digital, only I don’t have enough memory for that.

Did you know that when we remember something, we don’t always get the full and complete story? When we recall what we have remembered, we recall an impression of the event. It’s not like going to a file and replaying what the camera actually recorded. It is our thoughts and memories of the event the way we viewed it, with our emotions and foibles edited in.

I remember in Indiana Jones movies he tells his students that archaeologists search for the facts. He also explains to the students that if they want the truth, they need to leave his class and go to the philosophy class down the hall. When we remember something, we remember what we can of the facts. Even playing back the video recording can only show you one viewpoint and not the entire scene.

So why do I tell you this? I say this because of a great chief Master Sergeant that I used to work for. He kept his desk calendar up to date all year long. And, when the year was over, he carefully took it out of its holder, bounded in rubber bands, and dropped it into his bottom desk drawer. He called it his Pearl Harbor File. This level of organization is something I strive for and yet fall short on.

My actual office looks like a cluster of notes, blogs, study material and other paperwork piled in some places over a foot high. Weekly I have to dig, looking for something, and at least once a month I make an attempt to straighten everything out. Just a hint, if you clean the place by moving everything from one room to another, you can have a clean office and no place to sit and watch TV.

I believe the only way to solve this problem is to actually take a stand. Take a three-day weekend and dedicate it to once and for all, straightening everything out. As you do this, make sure everything has a place and the things you really don’t want are appropriately removed. When you do this, your brain will reward you by releasing many endorphins, and you will really feel good when you take a look at the entire place cleaned and organized.

There’s one other thing you have to do. You should give yourself 15 or 20 minutes sometime during the day (usually at the end of the day,) to go through and straighten up. Put away what you’ve been working on, put the dishes and glasses back into the kitchen, and file the paperwork. You do this for two reasons. First, you keep your place looking good, and secondly…  all those endorphins!

Thank you for being with me today. I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society. View all posts by Mike Balof