CREATE SPACE

-Derek Draper

Derek Draper talks about four domains – thinking, connecting, doing and being to create space for a good life and career. Being self-aware of your strengths and weaknesses is an advantage that enables you to evade potential problems and make effective decisions. Meaningful reflection helps in self- awareness, and it requires four kinds of space- temporal, physical, relational and psychic. 

Space for learning

Adopting the right mindset that is open to growth is vital in creating space for learning. Our brains are always receptive to change and capable of learning to conquer our fears. 

Space to connect with the self

Creating a space to connect with yourself by analysing what goes on in your body and mind is essential. By observing your emotions, you can keep them in control. According to the author, the feeling and number check where you identify what you feel and rate them from one to ten based on how strong it is will help in developing the emotional intelligence that enables you to recognise your core pathogenic beliefs (CPBs). Several CPBs stem from experiences in the past or childhood, which requires effort and space to deal with.  

Space to share and relate 

 It is also essential to connect with others to create good relationships and lively workspace. This requires the creation of space to share and relate. While sharing, transparency helps to sort out any problems or uneasiness without any fear of consequences. Creating space to connect and develop relationships is important to solve problems of anxiety, stress and low productivity that stems from relational issues. A stakeholder map can be used whereby on a piece of paper you place yourself in the middle and draw lines to all the people in your life and rate the relationship on a scale of one to ten, with ten being the strongest. This helps in identifying which relationships need to be worked on.

 Planning is essential for productivity as it gives a sense of clarity and sets the priorities right. It is wise to be flexible in a fast-changing world by constantly re-evaluating your goals and visions. To plan properly, you need to do two things; firstly create a clear goal and secondly create a clear agenda to achieve it. Being organised will help you be focused and active, enabling you to perform better. 

Space for doing 

Interruptions can affect your focus, and to stay concentrated, you have to make conscious efforts to keep such distractions away. Prioritising is key to productivity and can be achieved by having a to-do list or following the 4D Rule that stands for Do, Defer, Delegate or Drop. Start off by assigning urgent tasks to your Do category and place the most difficult tasks as first in your daily plan. Next, categorise things that can’t be done instantly to the Defer list and those that don’t require your personal attention to the Delegate list. Ones that are not important can be under Drop. It is, however, important to revisit the Defer list and reallocate them under either Do or Drop.

Space to lead

The space to lead involves what is known as “the third space” that is formed when two people try to work together. A good leader motivates and empowers, focusing on the team, steering them to the third space and guiding them to find solutions themselves. Delegation is another means of empowerment which enables the team to develop their skills and instil a sense of trust in them. It is important to communicate your expectations on the work and outcomes.

Space to be

 To create a space to be, you must look within and question the purpose of your life, which will help you rediscover your passions. Death is inevitable, and keeping it in mind helps to avoid any regrets and pursue things that make you happy and satisfied. Work shouldn’t be a terrible experience, if it’s so, then either you are stuck in the wrong job, or you need to discover a better work-life balance.

Space to grow

For an ideal future, you have to explore the space to grow by honestly analysing the self and being open to some unpleasant realities. The choices you make matters, and being aware of the cost of them is also vital. It is essential always to keep a check on your personal growth and changes required by holding No.1 Meetings with yourself. 

The author thus proposes three objectives- setting a strategy, adopting a growth mindset and raising productivity. To be the best version of yourself, you have to make space that focuses on self -awareness, growth, learning, interpersonal relationships and productivity. Creating this space requires hard work and self-analysis that will help you find your true purpose.

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