I'm doing these small big tasks these days (am I foolish?)

“If we attend continually and promptly to the little that we can do, we shall ere long be surprised to find how little remains that we cannot do.”

Samuel Butler, nineteenth-century novelist

Inspired by the power of less, since this 13th of March, I started carrying out only three small tasks per day. The first concerned my health, the second my soft skills and the third doing good to anyone else.

For my health, I decided to eat a fruit every morning, to burnish an area of my soft skills I kick-started speaking for 10 minutes on any topic, and in doing good to someone else, I take a little step. All these three activities, as you can see, are small and therefore easy to execute.

I chose to start small because launching directly in a huge project was becoming a drag on my will and enthusiasm. No matter how deeply I tried and desired, I was unable to carry out self-improvement activities in the way I felt was ideal.

Unsurprisingly, it burdened me with self-reproach. I felt discouraged, and instead of going forth on the track of self-improvement, I skirted off from it.

If I can’t single out 15-20 minutes per day for eating a cluster of fruits and salads, it’s fine. If I can’t muster up the will of exercising for 45 minutes per day, it’s fine.

In the beginning I can munch a fruit per day, and once encouraged by this improvement, I can opt for bigger tasks. Obviously I can eat a fruit going to work per day, and it doesn’t require much effort of the will.

Is it logical to quit even the tasks easy for us because we can’t take up the tough, the ideal? I guess no.

If you can’t tend to all the birds of the planet, will you choose to look the other way if a bird in your backyard is ailing? I won’t.

The same logic is applicable when it comes to taking steps that are vital for our growth. I guess that the biggest reason why I shy away from productivity-friendly activities is that I interfere what I can’t do with what I can, and thus all gets lost.

Eating a fruit every day, speaking for 10 minutes and a small deed to help (rather serve) a fellow human is easy. Once these three activities are woven in the dailyness of my routine, I can think of going further.

But before the 13th of April, I’m disinclined to weave fresh activities in the name of self-improvement, as it stands the risk to backfire. I’ll review the results then.