What I Learned from Spider Solitaire

Though I took a week’s vacation since we last “talked,” I still managed 57,853 steps, for a total of 391,367 since Memorial Day. This brings me more than half-way to my goal of 760,000.

If you know anything about me, you know that I set far too many expectations for my personal time. This week was no exception. Along with traveling north to my brother’s cottage for a few days, taking in a Drum Core International presentation, and enjoying my grandkids’ birthday party, I also planned to continue my walking schedule, master my understanding of the world of social media, and write 14,000 words for the new novel I began writing this spring.

In my first step toward mastering my social media understanding, I listened to a Michael Hyatt podcast. Interestingly, he was also taking the holiday week off. In his podcast, he warned listeners against trying to pack too much into vacation time, especially as it regards such things as social media! This began a conflict within me that I wrestled with all week. At the height of my angst, I would turn to such outlets as Spider Solitaire.

Though I have gone many serene years without playing this game, I picked it up about three weeks ago. In these three weeks, I have played 421 games. I know – scary. Scarier yet, I have only managed to win 146 of them.

I’ve learned a few things though, lessons I think any of us can apply to our lives as we consider the daunting tasks before us. OK, maybe I’m just trying to justify the wasted hours these 421 games represent, but here’s my list nonetheless:

·        TAKE IT A LITTLE BIT AT A TIME – The days I played more than two or three games in a row were the days I wasn’t sure which end was up. I would wander from the computer in a state of fog, unable to remember what I had left for or what else I had yet to do for the day. These were also the times where I lost most often. I find that if I take this or anything in life in smaller chunks, I can maintain my focus, be more effective in my moves, and succeed more often than not.

·        WHO CARES HOW MANY MOVES IT TAKES YOU, AS LONG AS YOU REACH YOUR DESTINATION? – Though you make more points with fewer moves, I see this as an unnecessary distraction in winning the game. If you don’t win, you don’t get any points anyway. So what if you have to “undo” a move or two or transfer cards from one stack to another, whether in life or in the game? You will have learned valuable lessons from these extra moves that you can apply in future challenges.

·        KNOW WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR – The first few times I played this game, I was just trying to keep everything looking neat and organized. I soon found that the game can get messy, just as in life. The goal is to know not just what pieces you already have but what pieces you still need to become successful. Take a breath. Analyze. Strategize. Implement. Evaluate. Rinse and repeat.

·        YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU HAVE IT LICKED OR IF IT HAS LICKED YOU UNTIL YOU REACH THE END – True, if you get more than half-way there, you can be pretty sure that you will be successful, but you can’t get lax. Conversely, the game will tell you it’s over when there are still moves to be made if you’re willing to look at the board with an open mind. Don’t give up too soon.

·        NO MATTER HOW GOOD YOU ARE, SOMETIMES YOU’RE JUST GOING TO LOSE. THIS DOESN’T MEAN YOU’RE A LOSER – The only people who truly lose are those who never even try.

Enjoy your day. Enjoy this blog.