A to Z of Luck : E is also for Easy Efficiency

A to Z of Luck: E is for Easy Efficiency

Here's another installment of my project to provide an antidote to the pessimism we find all around us, by exploring the ways that we can make our own luck.

My instinct is that we all are surrounded by a myriad of opportunities,and that the genius of luck is first, being able to see them, and second, being able to take advantage of them. I believe there are things we can do to make luck more likely, to help us make the most of the opportunities that are around us, even if the wider economy is in recession.

This one is somewhat prosaic. When we make small changes to be more organised and efficient, the effect on our energy can be big. (I'll post tomorrow about getting rid of tolerations that drain our energy)

I was talking to Wendy Davie the other day about how I've noticed in recent years that there is a trend to large dining plates and deep bowls which though small, don't fit in a dishwasher.

Deep noodle bowls are nice to eat out of, but they just don't stack well. Dishwashers only take one row of big plates (if they fit at all), rather than two rows of ordinary-sized dinner plates. Dishes with a big curvature in them also take more space, and are harder for the dishwasher jets to reach, so are less likely to be properly cleaned.

Similarly, extra tall glasses and coffee cups mean that you can only fill one row of the upper tier, and not use the fold-down stacking level.

All in all, oversize bowls, cups, glasses and plates mean you may be able to fit less than half as much in the dishwasher, which means you run it twice as often, using twice as much time unstacking, not to mention electricity, water, and dish detergent, and there are often dishes left on the bench, necessitating extra hand-washing.

My solution: choose an everyday dining set with smaller plates, without deep dishes, and ones which fit neatly into the dishwasher. Not only do you spend less time, money and energy on the dishes, but large plates encourage large portions (and few of us need to eat more!)

How does this relate to my ongoing series on luck? Well, if you reduce time by making efficiency easier, you're more likely to have the space in your life to take action when opportunities present themselves.

More of the A to Z on creating more luck (and getting more energy) tomorrow.