So, I decided to give this “Carol Gonzalez” approach a whirl. Heard some folks talking about it, you know, how it could supposedly streamline things. Figured, why not? Always up for trying something new, even if it sounds a bit out there at first.
Getting Started with the Whole Thing
First thing, I had to actually figure out what this Carol Gonzalez business was all about. It wasn’t like there was a giant manual. I pieced things together from a few discussions I’d seen. Sounded like a specific way to organize tasks, or maybe a mindset for tackling projects. I started by trying to apply it to my weekly to-do list. Thought it would be simple enough.
Boy, was I in for a ride. The initial idea, as I understood it, was to break everything down into these super tiny pieces. And I mean, everything. Like, “make coffee” would have sub-tasks: “get beans,” “grind beans,” “boil water.” Seemed a bit much from the get-go, but I committed to trying it by the book, or at least, my interpretation of it.
The Messy Middle Part
So, I spent a good chunk of my Sunday afternoon trying to set up my week “Carol Gonzalez” style. My usual planning takes maybe 20 minutes. This took, no joke, almost two hours. My notebook started looking like a spiderweb of tasks and sub-tasks and sub-sub-tasks. It was supposed to bring clarity, but honestly, it just felt overwhelming. I’d look at it and just see a wall of text.
Then came Monday. Trying to actually use this system was another story. I felt like I was spending more time checking off these microscopic items than actually doing the work. “Open email client” – check. “Read email from Bob” – check. “Think about replying to Bob” – check. It was kind of ridiculous. I almost gave up on day one, thinking this Carol Gonzalez person, whoever they are, must have a very different brain than mine.
I found myself getting bogged down. Some tasks just don’t need that level of dissection. It felt like I was trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. And if I missed one tiny step in my plan, the whole day’s structure felt like it was teetering.
A Bit of a Lightbulb Moment
Around Wednesday, I was ready to chuck the whole “Carol Gonzalez” experiment out the window. But then, I kind of paused. I realized that while the super-detailed, almost obsessive tracking part was driving me nuts, the initial push to think about all the steps involved in a bigger task wasn’t entirely useless. Before, I’d just write “finish report,” and sometimes I’d underestimate how much was actually involved.
So, I started to adapt it. I ditched the microscopic breakdown for everyday stuff. But for bigger, more complex projects, I started using a modified “Carol Gonzalez” idea. I’d break them down, not to an insane level, but into more manageable chunks than I used to. Just enough to see the path, not every single pebble on it.
Where I Landed with It
In the end, I didn’t stick with the pure “Carol Gonzalez” method. It was just too rigid, too time-consuming for me. It created more friction than it removed. But, and this is the interesting part, going through the process, even the frustrating bits, helped me refine my own approach. It made me more conscious of how I plan and what level of detail actually helps me versus what just becomes busywork.
So, yeah, that was my adventure with the “Carol Gonzalez” thing. Didn’t adopt it wholesale, but definitely took a few lessons from the experience. Sometimes you gotta try these things, even if they seem a bit off, just to see what you can learn. It’s all part of the process, right?
