Laugh track

What made you laugh today?

Laughter is good for your health. And if you make a point of looking for the humor in daily life, you're more likely to find it.

Finishing unfinished business

Sometimes all it takes to complete something is to declare it finished: “I’m done with that.” “I’m not going to waste any more time waiting for that person.” “I admit that this is something I will probably never do.”

What are some people and things that you’re going to stop worrying about or waiting for?


What are some projects that you might soon strike off your list and admit that you’re never going to do them?


What is it that keeps you holding onto so many more things than you can handle?


Why is it hard to let go of things?


What are some of the things in your life that you might soon be ready to let go of?

This week's theme is unfinished business.

People are waiting

Who is waiting for a decision from you before they can go ahead and take action?
How many promises to get together with friends and acquaintances remain unfulfilled?
To whom do you own a thank-you for they help they provided?
To whom do you owe a compliment for the skillful way they handled something?

Are your bits of unfinished business more likely to be things that affect only you, or things that involve other people? Are you good at getting your own stuff done, less so when someone has asked you to do something? Or, are you the reverse, taking care of anything the moment someone else asks you, but never finding the time for your own personal stuff?

This week's theme is unfinished business.

How clean is your house?

What messes are you reluctant to clean up?

What would you find if you opened up your closets?

What is hiding at the back of your drawers?

Would you be surprised by what is buried in your car's glove compartment?

How many books have you started reading that you intend to finish — eventually, when you have time?

When is the last time you vacuumed?

How many repair or home improvement tasks are waiting half-finished?

For deeper insights into the meaning of clutter, along with powerful strategies for cleaning up your life, read Rick Aster's book Fear of Nothing.

This week's theme is unfinished business.

My million-dollar idea

What was one great idea that you didn’t follow through to completion? What happened to get in the way?

How would your life be different now if you had successfully executed that idea? Will you have a chance to do it again, or is it that particular opportunity forever lost?

As you go through today's questions, notice if you had many examples to choose from. How often do you let brilliant ideas simply dissipate, and why? What would you have to risk if you were to attempt to follow through on them?

In 1992, when we were planning our wedding, we had a great idea for a software organization package that would help people through the rigors of getting a wedding off the ground. Wedding planner software, which was entirely unknown at the time! We were too busy to follow through — we got stuck in the process of writing a business plan — and by the following year, wedding planner software started popping up everywhere. The train had left the station, and we were left scratching our heads on the platform!

What's your great story of lost opportunity?

This week's theme is unfinished business.

Unfinished business

What is unfinished in your life?

Today begins a new feature: theme-of-the-week. We'd like to take a closer look at certain subjects, delving more deeply into them over five days than we can do in a single question. Since this is something we've wanted to do for awhile but had trouble getting to, it seemed only natural for the first theme-of-the-week to be...unfinished business.

Everyone has a list of things they mean to do, but haven't yet done. Whether it's written down and accuses you from a white board every time you enter your kitchen, or just a few things you keep tucked in the back of your mind, let's spend a few days thinking about those dangling projects and ideas.

In addition to "to-do" items, there are also unresolved conflicts, messy interpersonal relationships, things that shouldn't be in your house (or your life) anymore, and all those things that you meant to do Someday but have never gotten around to.

What are some incomplete or unfinished pieces of business in your life? How many can you easily list before you have to start digging around in your mental inventory? What's the most glaring thing in your life that is unfinished?

Top Ten: friends

Who are your top ten best friends — not just right now, but considering all of the friends you have had in all the periods of your life?

Sunday is Top Ten Day! It's a time to rest, reflect, and take stock of one area of your life.

Stuck in Topeka...or Twickenham...or Trenton...or Toronto...

What is one place where you were stuck because a car, bus, or train broke down, or a flight was cancelled? Do you have a story about it?

Reading, writing, and rhetoric

What are three important lessons that should be part of every child’s school education?

The birds and the bees

Where, and from whom, did you actually learn about sex?

April fool

Was there ever a time when you were the butt of a public joke? After it was over, were you able to laugh about it? Or do you still flush with shame when you remember it?