by Debbie Ruston, Featured Contributor
We live in a world of schedules, often jumping from one thing to another, multi-tasking along the way. This can lead to performing tasks poorly because we are just trying to get through the long list of everything we have to do. There is a huge difference between doing something well and doing something just to get it over with because we feel we have to get to the next thing on the list. This happens in the business world as well as our personal lives. But the two worlds intermingle and sometimes our best examples are outside of business, and these remind us of 
concepts we may not be aware of, or may have forgotten.
This summer we watered our gardens every few days. We watered, really, because we didn’t want the plants we put in to die. So, we went through the motions every few days to keep our investment from needing to be pulled out and thrown out. I can honestly say we did not water because of the love of the garden, although we both love gardening and the results it produces. Later in the summer, we were having a big event at our home and the plants were not doing too well. For the couple of weeks prior, I watered every day extensively with a bit of miracle grow in the water. It actually didn’t take that much extra time, but the results were remarkable. When we watering every few days, we were trying to be efficient with our time, and were really just going through the motions and making it a “job” to complete as quickly as possible. Watering everyday with the bit of fertilizer with a defined purpose in mind of improving the look of the garden, took a bit more time, but was much more effective. Very quickly the plants took hold and exploded with growth and looked just beautiful. I had thought the reason the garden wasn’t looking great was due to the plants. It wasn’t the plants, it was my care of the plants.
A good reminder not to just go through the motions, but actually do things that are effective that lead to the desired end result. I look forward to next year’s garden, with a renewed outlook to be more effective, and I am grateful for the everyday lessons we find in everything we do. When you are open to lessons, they spill over and benefit other areas of life as well.
