It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)
All of our past posts have been placed HERE if you want to go back and read one.
"IT'S JUST A BUSY SEASON..."
"WHEN I GET THROUGH THIS SEASON, IT WILL BE BETTER..."
"IT'S ANOTHER BUSY SEASON, BUT I'M ALMOST THROUGH IT..."
Have you ever heard these things said? Have you ever said them yourself?
I have. I've become a MASTER at defining the "seasons of life" I find myself in.
The reality is that it's really just a way for me to justify:
- Poor Planning
- Bad Decisions
- Out of Control Margins
- Too Much on my Plate
- An Un-Healthy Life Rhythm
- Out of Whack Priorities
I could go on and on here, but you get the point.
Lynnette Shepherd writes a great article entitled "How to Survive the Busy Seasons of Life". You can read it HERE.
In her article she shares 4 thoughts that I'll share her. Her article identifies the 4 thoughts, but I'll add my commentary under those thoughts:
#1) PRIORITIZE
She shares the quote from Greg McKeown's book, "Essentialism, The Disciplined Pursuit of Less":
"If you don't prioritize your life, someone else will."
We have become great at blaming others for the seasons we're in. We allow others to convince us to do things we shouldn't be doing, or we feel guilty so we try to compensate.
Learning to prioritize aligns our actions with what's most important.
#2) SAY NO TO UNNECESSARY COMMITMENTS
I would simply say, "Learn to say NO". We don't say that enough. We want to please people, and we often do this at the expense of our own lives and schedules.
My friend Jim Burns always says, "If the devil can't make you bad, he'll make you busy".
#3) GET PLENTY OF SLEEP
We often sacrifice our sleep when things get busy.
Tom Rath sums this up from his book, "Eat, Move, Sleep":
"Half an hour of exercise in the morning makes for better interactions all day. Then a sound night of sleep gives me energy to tackle the next day. I am a more active parent, a better spouse, and more engaged in my work with I eat, move, and sleep well."
#4) PLAN TIME TO REFUEL
What is it that brings you energy, that restores your soul?
When we're running hard in one of the crazy seasons of life, we don't take the time to recharge.
An electric car with no charge left is useless. This is what we become!
*We'll spend time exploring this next week... "What Refuels You?"
Look at the season of life you're in right now. Are you in control? Are you feeling out of control?
Check these 4 things: PRIORITIES, SAYING NO, SLEEP, REFUEL How are you doing with these things?
It's time to take control of the season you're in right now, and these 4 things will not only help you survive it, but it will help create some habits that will keep you from getting stuck in the "BUSY SEASON CYCLE".
"If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at will change." Wayne Dyer
"I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats. I don't intend to waste any of mine." Neil Armstrong
"Not how long, but how well you have lived is the main thing." Seneca
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