Ultimately, our values will guide us.
There was a time in my life when I didn’t base all my decisions on my personal values, I really just based most of my decisions on what I was able to do at the time, and what I thought everyone else wanted me to do.
Eventually, this method will wear you out!
I said YES to everything.
Can you bring cookies to the bake sale?
Can you make this little birthday cake for me?
Can you do a photo shoot for my family?
Can you speak for an event on Friday?
Can you edit this one little thing in Photoshop for me?
Yes, I can bake the cookies, design a birthday cake, do a photo shoot, speak for your event, and edit something in Photoshop. And before I knew it, I had a full schedule, and there’s only ONE thing on the list that I actually feel like doing.
Sound familiar?
It makes us feel good to do something for someone, and we can tend to crave that satisfaction.
Don’t get me wrong – it’s fun to help others out. But, some of us think we can save the world in a day.
The TRUTH is: When we say YES to something, we are ultimately saying NO to something else.
I may have just said YES to baking a dessert for a dinner party, but I ultimately may have said NO to the only blank spot on my weekly calendar that was going to be used to have movie night with my kids.
When I say YES to things that are not lined up with my values (discussed in a previous email), I’m possibly saying NO to things that DO line up with my values.
Uh, oh. Houston, we have a problem.
“So, you’re telling me I can’t do it all?”
I mean, you can try.
According to an article in The New York Times, on average, American adults are watching 5:04 hours of television per day!
Now, I’m not saying TV is the devil, but obviously, it’s taking up almost one-fourth of most people’s entire day! (6 x 4 = 24, right?) Dannng!
The saying is worth repeating: We all have 24 hours in a day. All of us.
Why is it that we have more technology to do things for us, but we seem to have less time?
What are we doing with those waking hours?
We all want more time.
The last thing someone will say on their death bed is, “I wish I could’ve stayed at work longer.” I mean, unless you don’t like your home life, then No, it would be more like, “I wish I had spent more time with my family.”
So, when do you say YES?
When it lines up with your values.
It’s simple in nature, yet, sometimes so hard to do. First thing is to own up to what we want to achieve, and stop blaming others for our lack of accomplishments.
I’ve put together some great resources and things that help keep me on track:
- My favorite planner. I searched through many planners before I came across this one. I don’t need fancy, I need practical. It needs to fit in my purse, and I don’t want to spend too much either. I want to be able to rip out the pages as I use them up. I need daily and monthly spaces, and it needs to be durable. PERFECT, right here at Walmart >>> SEE IT BIGGER Daily Poly Planner. You can order it today and pick it up on your way home with free pickup! Check out these also.
- But I still feel like I don’t have enough time. Just tell me how. I created a printable to help sort out the URGENT & IMPORTANT, using the “Eisenhower Matrix” highlighted in Stephen Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Trust me, if you do this little exercise (that only takes about 10 minutes per week), you will start seeing progress in your life OVERALL. This exercise was the start of me turning my busy days around years ago. Grab it here by joining my email list (and get random, encouraging emails about life, money, health, and recipes).
- But still, how do I “Make Time?” First, start with writing a daily to-do list using the template/printable above. Also, here is one of my helpful blog posts to help motivate you to do what matters most to you.
Very soon, I’ll be launching the MOST VALUABLE (and FREE) resource that I’ve ever created! This resource will be sent straight to your inbox when it launches (if you’re on my list), and you’ll be joining me in the pursuit to creating MORE LIFE with LESS! This was a life-changer for me.
As I’m always conversing with others, I’ve realized that this was something that we needed. For me, it originated out of necessity, not even realizing that over many years of experimenting with different methods, I’ve discovered the most effective ways to keep our life simple, organized, and less-stressed. Sounds great, doesn’t it?
Stay tuned!
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