The Sane & Satisfied Checklist

The other day I saw something (doesn't matter what it was) and I automatically thought to myself, "That's Sane & Satisfied". And it occurred to me that I've never really laid down a set of criteria for something being Sane & Satisfied but somehow I just knew it was.

It's been difficult for me to put into words what exactly I mean by Sane & Satisfied but I thought it might be helpful for a newbie if I wrote a Sane & Satisfied Checklist. I envision this checklist being most helpful when you have to make a decision about something. That decision doesn't have to be life or death and can be as mundane as, "Should I say yes to helping out with the PTA this year?" Every choice we make takes up more of our time, energy and resources. So each choice can make us either more relaxed and happy or more stressed and unhappy. I find I'm most unhappy when I do things that go against my current path. Likewise, I'm most happy when I'm doing something in my element.

The Sane & Satisfied Checklist

• This is in line with what I'm already doing.
• If it isn't in line then it's an exciting alternate or compliment path I can take.
• When I think of doing this I get a happy/warm/pleasant feeling.
• I have the resources and skills to do this.
• If I don't have the resources or skills now I know where to go to get them.
• I have the time needed to complete this.
• If I don't have the time needed I can move my schedule around.
• This is the next logical/practical step.

Notes: Depending on what you are evaluating some of these criteria might not be relevant. Use your own judgement to determine if what you are evaluating is Sane & Satisfied. Also I didn't write this list to encourage you to stay inside your comfort zone and not try anything new. There's a difference between experimenting and getting off-track.

And as always this is not the be-all-end-all list of SNS criteria. Being Sane & Satisfied will be different for everyone. But at least this can get you started.