On Thursday I remarked that companies have handbooks for their employees, so maybe I should make one for myself. I took my own advice and did it. Usually when I make goal or priority lists I phrase things as future-oriented (“I want to ___”) but this time I chose to phrase everything as the present (a tip I found in a fashion handbook!). I like the strong statement it makes.
The direct inspiration for this handbook was an off-week and the lists I made that Thursday, which helped me articulate the ideas that went into the handbook. But those ideas, in turn, are the result of lots of percolating and exploration over the past few years. If you’d sat me down in 2007 and asked me to make a similar handbook, I doubt it would have come out anywhere as concrete as this one.
Satsumabug’s Life-Art Handbook
Created March 2011
What do you want?
I want to be happy, in the moment and for life.
Ground Rules
To be happy:
- I am attuned to myself, as well as connected with the world around me.
- I have ample time for both work and play.
- I enjoy an uncluttered home, a growing garden, my relationship with Erik, time with Lyapa, and my beautiful body.
To feel balanced (not overwhelmed):
- I do one thing at a time, whenever possible.
- I know what’s important during any given hour, day, week, or month. I have articulated my goals and my priorities, and I re-articulate them whenever necessary. I discard what’s not important to me.
- I know the difference between importance and urgency. I know what needs to be done now, and everything else can wait its turn.
- I don’t over-schedule or over-commit myself. I take on only what I can handle and what matters to me.
- I don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. I do only what I need to, realizing that saying no to some things means saying yes to what I most want.
- I thoughtfully choose how to spend my time; time does not spend me. I know what I’m trading off.
- I ignore all “shoulds” and listen only to my internal guide.
Ways to connect with the world
- I blog, and read and comment on selected other blogs.
- I take appropriate-length time to email the people I appreciate.
- I make and take appropriate-length phone calls from loved ones.
- I spend time with family and friends, when I want to and only for as long as I want to.
- I regularly spend time outdoors.
- I choose mindful outings at regular intervals.
Ways to connect with myself
- I enjoy some quiet and still time, every day.
- I spend time with my body, listening to her needs and desires, and nurturing her.
- I eat mindfully and with enjoyment.
- I move my body joyfully and regularly.
- I present myself to the world in ways that make me feel at ease and at my most beautiful.
- I choose activities I love.
- I cultivate happiness.
When I work:
- I cultivate lifelong fulfillment and self-expression, and raise global awareness.
- I know which of my projects are most important to me, and which are most urgent. I know where I currently stand in all my projects.
- I draw and paint regularly, for my own pleasure and to make it easier to express my vision.
- I write regularly, for myself (morning pages) and on my projects.
- I blog regularly, to build an audience for my work and to keep myself accountable and supported.
- I read regularly, for my own enjoyment and to enrich my projects.
When I play:
- I cultivate happiness and a sense of abundance and adventure. I tune in to myself.
- I seek out adventures and new experiences.
- I do not feel bad for “not working.” Play enhances work, and the division between them is not always solid.
—–
That’s what I’ve got so far. There are definitely parts of this that feel stronger to me than other; for instance, I love all my “ways to connect with myself” but I feel the “work” section is still more vague than it should be (reflecting my own lack of focus). And you’ll notice the handbook makes no reference to many things that are important to me, like environmental sustainability or political action. But I’m not worried. I think this is already an amazing document and I can’t wait to start working from it and making it better all the time!
You know what else just occurred to me? With this handbook, I’ll never need New Year’s Resolutions again. I’ll just revisit the handbook every January to revise where needed, but most revisions will probably get made as I go along, since I’ll be living the book each day. 🙂
satsumabug.com | Lisa Hsia 
This is brilliant! And so inspiring. I sense a Kimber Handbook in my future. Thanks for sharing your light!
Thank you, Kimber!! I bet your Kimber Handbook will be awesome. 🙂
I love, love, love, love it!!
Thank you so much!! 😀 It’s given me sooo much energy!
Lisa, I’m glad to see you’re working on your Life Art-Handbook. I can tell by the way you’ve written it, how important all these points are to you, and as you work from it and revise it as necessary, I hope it serves you well. It’s interesting to me how much it also shows how different we human beings can be at processing the stuff of our lives.
At the moment I’m writing this, my body feels like it is seizing in on itself while I’ve been waiting for someone to pick up the phone at a government office for almost 45 minutes. I decided to check some things online as I waited so I wouldn’t just be wasting time. Earlier, I opened a letter sent from this office that didn’t make sense and needs to be addressed as soon as possible. I think I’ll have to eventually hang up without anyone ever answering the phone at all. This means I’ll have to take the bus to get to the office in person tomorrow or the next morning, and that I’ll have to anticipate every piece of paper they will need from me or I’ll have to go home and come back the next day to do it all over again. I’ll have to take the same line I was on last Summer when my bus was shot at, and today feels like a bad day to have that come into mind. I’ll be at that office for at least two hours waiting my turn, and I can’t use that time to write or read anything interesting, because I have to keep listening out for my name so I don’t I lose my turn.
My Life/Work handbook would say: “Be calm and resilient when unexpected difficulty stops you from doing what you need to do for your own well being.” Actually it’s always said that. It’s just that each hit makes doing both of those things harder and harder. I look forward, with much hope and with all my best wishes, to reading more about your progress as you write about your journey.
Oh Ré, that sounds like a miserable day. I hate being on the phone with almost anyone — I will go to great lengths to avoid phone calls — and having to wait for a government office is the worst. I hope things get sorted out soon.
Calm and resilience are good, as is recognizing what’s needed for our own wellness and happiness. For me it also helps a lot to try to let go of things I have no control over (hah! easier said than done!). I remember being in Kimber’s yoga class once and she said she likes to think of the duck, letting water run off its feathers without being affected. It’s a common metaphor, but what I loved about it was that she reminded us the duck lives in water. Sometimes when things are upsetting me I wonder, “Why is this happening? I wish everything would just go perfectly all the time!” But ultimately, challenge is where we all live, even though our challenges all look different. Love to you.
This is great, Lisa! I’m glad your handbook can grow and change as you do — I foresee a lot of that in the future. Whenever your boat hits the doldrums, you can pull out your “log” and chart a new course.
Thank you, Sherry! I love your metaphor of my handbook as a nautical log. I have a great children’s book called Carry On, Mr Bowditch that is all about navigation. It’ll give me a little thrill each time I use the handbook to think of myself as Mr Bowditch on the open sea. 😉
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