12-Minute Balance (Revisited)

The 12-Minute Series was originally posted in 2012.

We’ve decided to republish it integrally because we believe it can still help as everyone aspires to make things better.

Let’s hope it stirs up the discussion and stimulates you to change the world 12-Minute at a time!

This article was originally posted on May 12, 2012

Many believe that one of the most important keys to happiness is balance. Sadly, many lives equate to a never ending juggling act struggling in search of that so elusive concept.  

The 12-Minute Approach offers you simple yet powerful ways to achieve that so precious balance in your life.

Let’s hope that, by focusing on rhythm, order and harmony, these 12-Minute Ideas help you strive toward that balance so essential to your happiness and well-being.

Equal Balance between Needs and Activities

In order to stay happy yet still be effective, your life should be equally balanced between your needs and your activities.

Portfolio Update November 2019

For a little over 4 years now, we have been reporting our DIY Portfolio progress every 12 weeks or so. And despite the fact the entire process was quite fulfilling by keeping us accountable and fueling our reflection, enjoy these reports while they last because they might stop coming sooner than you might expect. In fact, we have been thinking a lot lately about our blogging career and are at least considering an extended break.

So, if you can’t live without these reports or any other part of our blog, show us some love! 

Because the cold hard facts are that we simply may not have the will to continue on our own.

Let’s proceed for now. Hopefully not one last time…

You can access earlier portfolio updates here:

All Portfolio Updates

Portfolio Update November 2017

Portfolio Update February 2018

Portfolio Update May 2018

Portfolio Update August 2018

Portfolio Update November 2018

Portfolio Update February 2019

Portfolio Update May 2019

Portfolio Update August 2019

In the last few months, many signs have been pointing in the direction of a recession. The blow-in-our-faces economical alarms seem to be ticking louder and more often. We can be worried that some of our leaders (I can at least think of one in particular) won’t be able to effectively handle potentially fast approaching crisis. Could the next major recession be also environmentally driven? In many ways, this could be remarkably painful.

We still have a strong belief in the long-term perspective of stocks and won’t bother too much about short-term gyrations. We can only focus on putting measures in place to profit from amazing opportunities colossal market noise may provide.

Housekeeping The 12-Minute Way (Revisited)

The 12-Minute Series was originally posted in 2012.

We’ve decided to republish it integrally because we believe it can still help as everyone aspires to make things better.

Let’s hope it stirs up the discussion and stimulates you to change the world 12-Minute at a time!

This article was originally posted on April 12, 2012

Living in a clean environment can contribute to your well-being and happiness but proper housekeeping takes time.

So, here are some 12-Minute Ideas to keep your house neat and tidy. Hope this helps make your home more peaceful, relaxing and inspiring.

Becoming Serenely Efficient

In my early years, without knowing why, I was naturally drawn towards things done correctly or with what I now know, efficiently. At that time, I didn’t realize how amazing that frame of mind could eventually make me feel. I now relish the calmness and peace of mind that come with being efficient or more efficient I should rather say. My hope is that one day, others might at least catch a glimpse of the enviable serenity of the efficient.  

To bluntly summarize our actual way of thinking in that regard, our motto has been to accomplish as much as possible with as little as possible. For instance, despite the fact we are willing to work hard, we are always looking for ways to minimize our efforts to still obtain good results. These efficient longings have tainted our actions for a long time now.

To be frank, at a young age, I probably aimed more for perfection. My attention to details got a lot of work done but annoyed quite a few. After some time, I realized trying to become perfect was a fool’s errand because being perfect is simply impossible for us mere humans. Over time, I learn to set free form perfectionism.

Yet I never stopped craving for things done correctly and I slowly found out efficiency was the answer to my prayers. Still young, I naively thought nobody would be against things being done right.

But the more I got exposed to the real world, the more I understood it was not that simple. Many are afraid of people who mostly do things right. They are not willing to change. They wrongly think effective methods will only mean higher standards and hence, more work for them. They don’t see that in reality, it’s quite the opposite.

12-Minute and Your Schedule (Revisited)

The 12-Minute Series was originally posted in 2012.

We’ve decided to republish it integrally because we believe it can still help as everyone aspires to make things better.

Let’s hope it stirs up the discussion and stimulates you to change the world 12-Minute at a time!

This article was originally posted on March 12, 2012

The 12-Minute Approach can be applied tons of ways to your schedule. We will submit you some ideas here but the possibilities are almost endless.

Why 12 Minutes

Using the 12-Minutes Approach will allow you to be more efficient; doing something different only 12 minutes every day can produce surprising results.

If you break down your day in 12-Minute Periods, you’ll find that there are 120 such Periods:

1 day = 24 hours x 60 minutes =

24 hours x 5 x 12-Minute = 120 x 12-Minute

Psychologically Managing Extended Time Off

Just a few years back, I was the last person to think that psychologically handling retirement could be a challenge. For me, it was a non-issue and talking about it seemed a waste of time. How could you feel bad being on vacation all the time?

Now with a couple leaves of absence under my belt, I must admit that to my complete surprise, my mental wellbeing has been somewhat put to the test. A lot more than expected because to be honest, I anticipated zilch, nothing, no problem at all. With experience, I now know better. It’s kind of ironic because many know me as the one that plans everything. But I did not plan what may be considered obvious.

I have to confess it has been much more trying than I thought. Again, during this year’s extended time off, I mostly battled with guilt and having too much time to think. It may appear silly but, choosing what to do with all that free time can become a burden. You probably won’t feel sorry for me and I know, another great problem to have…