THE VULCAN ISSUE PURGE
by Robert Beaupre, CDAAC, MMin.
The Vulcan Issue Purse is a fun group taught in our life skills series, based both on Spock’s mind “meld” from Star Trek (some of us remember that TV series), and a rumored Ivy League business school technique. It is effective in getting that young recovery mind started out in life planning, and a great technique anytime in life, especially when one is facing a crossroad or making a large decision. Spock would be able to read a persons (or alien's) complete thoughts, by simply placing his hand on their head. That is pretty much what we want the piece of paper to do. A prayer to quicken our minds and to be thorough and honest is the most necessary ingredient in this process!
Part 1 (the Spock part) is to write down everything on one's mind, keeping it in categories where possible. This is a great tool to alleviate that “Committee in our minds" thing AA talks about. When we write it down we get two effects; first, we don’t have to think about it all the time, and second, now we could start to see it logically and even plan it. “It" is safe and recorded, we can look it up anytime for reference. This means in the future there is more room in our minds for healthier thoughts - more room for the Spirit to fill us with His truths.
Writing things down seems to expose them as being simpler than we thought. When we think- we are often driven by emotions. When we write, we have the ability to be more logical. When we see our thoughts in writing we are able to acknowledge them, and can then ask Jesus for help and direction with those issues. We have 18 major thoughts cross our brains every second. This is a chance to write them down, and evaluate them.
One might list things and issues in a chronological or category manner; (or as a fun exercise- go back to crucial times in our lives and remember what was important to us then). When that’s done, you could add categories like “should be” and “could be” thinking. This is a perfect time to build in activities such as more reading of the Word, a physical exercise plan or those dietary changes we need. Or, the entire list could be about one's troublesome area in life. Here, we start to see how each thing affect many other things. Remember the old Indian story about ripples in our pond? The pond is our life, the ripples are all those “things” we have in them. (I digress, another article, maybe someday)
Next, I ask students to prioritize those issues, maybe on a 1-10 scale. Then, write in a ratio symbol, with the 1st number being the timeframe they will start working on that issue and the 2nd being the estimated number of weeks to complete the project. Since most treatment clients are in a four week program,we do this timeframe according to those weeks in program.
Part 2 (the Ivy League business school part) is to make a timeline graph of these issues. I suggest a landscaped 11 ½ by 17 inch piece of paper, and all the creativity they can muster. Colored magic markers are great here. The first attempt may be a rough drafter, leading to a final and complete version. I’ve seen great work done in an Excel spreadsheet.
In the left column would be the issues; across the bottom would be the week number (or year number in an extended version). Students would then lay in their creative lines for each issue, corresponding to the ratio symbol. Lines can have phases, branches, check points, or any kind of customization. Advanced planners will see here that priorities and ratios may need to be changed, based upon actual time available. Many line issues can be broken into phases to limit actual time needed. Most plans do go in phases, such as: research>phone calls>evaluation>planning>action>evaluation. Maybe targets can be drawn for one time issues, like appointments.
As the lines are laid in, one may see a need to change and juggle priorities and the overall time load. Then we get to see what our real priorities are. We may need to delegate, or communicate a delay.
It is said, that planning has a 10:1 R.O.I. That’s Return On Investment. For every 1 minute (of maybe feeling a little silly) writing out lists and drawing plans, we will reap 10 times the benefits. This all comes down to organizing those initial thoughts logically, and then staking out a specific approach to going where we need to go from here.
I’ve done this several times in my life, once with an easel size pad, taping category sheets all over my apartment and adding to them for 3 days. It did lead me to a well planned and executed major life change. Unfortunately, that time, I forgot to bring Jesus along. (now I know better)
Any good plan includes flexibility and regular check points. God will actually help us with our plans, if they follow His wishes for us and we pray for His guidance.
And this may be the main objective: When you want to check what you should be doing that week, all you have to do is identify the week number and look straight up the column. Also, when developing your day’s plans, if you consult your life plan, you may be able to fill open time slots with something long range productive, some plan you may be a bit behind on.
A reverse plan can also be done the same way. With most goals, there is a time control factor that develops the schedule. During that required time, maybe you could build in other activities to make the goal even more enjoyable. To buy a house you need a down payment. You can only save X amount per week, so you will buy in 5 years. Now you have 5 years to build your credit rating, and maybe get a real estate license to save on commissions. Those two doable functions may save you ten grand in cash money! Or, if it takes two years to reach that certification, maybe a new field of study can complement it, finishing both at the same time.
In a bit over an hour, one can take all the issues they are confronted with or bothered by, and put them into a scheduled action plan, with flexibility, timelines, priorities and checkpoints. Then, of course, the humanly hardest part- we need to JUST DO IT!
Robert Beaupre is a manager, counselor and teacher at New Life Spirit Recovery
To read more articles from Points of View and Perspectives, see our archives
Alcoholics, Addicts & Doors
Points of View & Perspectives: Just Do It, Steps In the Snow
The Sugar in the Candy: How I found my Career
