It’s scorching hot outside and the window panes melt human flesh. And yet, the aircon blows cold air like a timid school boy blowing kisses to his first crush.
For months we have been having challenges with the aircon in our office, but only now in the blistering Santiago summer do we begin to feel the pain.
We need air. Lots of it.
So we called an expert to save us.
Enter Enrique, our deliverer.
After a quick revision of the aircon equipment, Enrique gave us the much awaited diagnostic.
- The aircon machine was lacking some serious love and needed urgent maintenance. The blades were blunt. Everything was covered in dust and muck.
- No filter. Hence the dust and muck. Everything and anything was being sucked in.
- Lack of gas and coolant.
- The aircon closet was being used as a space to store cleaning equipment. Mountains of buckets, mops and other cleaning supplies were suffocating the aircon machine and blocking the air flow. By removing everything we could instantly create more suction.
We were expecting the worse, a total replacement of the aircon system. This would be a huge investment, and one we couldn’t afford at the moment.
But the solution was much more simple.
San Enrique told us that with some small tweaks we could fix these minor problems and enjoy cold, powerful air once more.
This got me thinking.
Do we not all fall victim to some of the same problems as our poorly cared-for aircon machine?
Most of the time it’s small tweaks that we need in our persona lives to produce bigger and better results. Not a total life rehaul.
As January is upon us, it’s befitting that we all open up our personal aircon closets and have a serious review of the space inside and the state of the equipment.
Don’t kill the goose
“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live.” — Jim Rohn
In his book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey shares the timeless analogy of the man and the golden goose.
One day a man awakes to find that his goose has laid a golden egg. Not believing his eyes, the man takes the egg to the market and confirms the unbelievable — his goose had produced a golden egg!
Day after day this happens. The man wakes up and fetches a golden egg. Unsurprisingly, he soon becomes very wealthy.
And then the man becomes impatient. Why wait each day for only one egg? Wouldn’t it be better to have multiple eggs right now?
He was done waiting.
In his impatience, the man kills the goose. He greedily opens up the goose to claim his eggs, and to his utter dismay, there was nothing.
The goose was now dead, and so was the opportunity of the daily golden egg.
We are the goose.
Our golden eggs are what we produce.
If we overly focus on results without taking care of the goose, we run the risk of running ourselves into a state of malfunction just like my crappy aircon machine.
The goose needs love and aircon machines need maintenance.
Is it crazy to think that you and I need the same thing?
Take care of yourself this year.
Exercise. Eat healthy. Sleep. Give up your unhealthy habits.
Your goose will be produce better golden eggs.
Install that filter
“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.” ― Winston S. Churchill
You can’t do everything.
Look carefully at the diagram below. Do you ever feel so divided?
I do.
I often feel tired and energy-scattered. I wear many hats — husband, father, entrepreneur, professor, writer, church member, friend, and the list goes on.
Is it really feasible to achieve a single concentration of energy on only one thing in your life? I don’t believe so. Life is about founding the balance between competing activities and roles. However, we certainly could be more smart and conscious about what we say yes to.
That’s why we need a filter.
Without one we find ourselves busy and choking on too many activities and responsibilities. Without one we end up like the aircon machine, groaning under the weight of months or years of muck.
One such filter is having clear goals.
For every invitation or opportunity that comes your way, ask yourself: will this help me draw closer to my goals? If not, have the courage to say no, for it is a mere distraction.
At the beginning of the year it’s easy to get excited about all the things one wants to achieve during the next 365 days. However, I challenge you to think about what your filter will be this year. Perhaps aim to do do less, but with better results.
Fuel yourself right
You are what you eat.
The aircon lacked serious power because it lacked gas and coolant.
It was hungry. It wanted to be fed.
Eat breakfast.
Eat lunch.
Eat dinner.
Drink water.
Fuel yourself this year. Stop skipping meals.
If you can, cook extra at home and take to work the next day. Your’ll be amazed at the money you will save and the weight you will lose.
Make space for suction
“Sometimes you need to step outside, get some air, and remind yourself of who you are and who you want to be.” — Noname
It was incredible how such a simple thing as removing all the junk and cleaning supplies from the closet instantly improved the air flow in our office. Emptying the closet gave the aircon room to breathe which in turn created stronger suction and more cold air.
This taught me an important lesson regarding space.
We saw the space as an opportunity to cram it with things we wanted out of sight. We transformed the aircon closet into a storage closet.
How foolish we were.
What about the space in your life? Are you cramming it with noise and activities?
We need to find personal space in the busy, noisy, digital worlds we now live in.
Space to think.
To reflect.
To pray.
To question.
To seek.
To be silent.
Whether it be 15 minutes a day or 1 hour a week, such space is sorely needed in our high-speed lives.
Give yourself space this year. Your mind and body need room to breathe.
Make small tweaks for a huge year
I remember the aircon used to make an annoying rattling sound — another reason why we thought the machine was completely bust. It turns out that there was a single screw lose that just needed to be tightened.
What happened when we tightened the screw?
The sound disappeared.
Sometimes we mistake the real cause of our pain and suffering, erroneously thinking that we need drastic change.
More often than not, tightening up a screw here and there, doing some regular maintenance and fuelling up correctly is what makes all the difference.
For a massive year, start with the small things.
Happy new year!
