Posted by Meredith Spears on June 09, 2010 03:50 p.m.
I don’t know about you, but I have so much going on in my life on a weekly and daily basis that it’s really, really hard for me to keep track of it all. Between my personal life and work, I have enough going on to keep me busy for the rest of my life – which, generally speaking, is the way I like it. Keeping busy prevents me from getting bored or complacent, but it can be a struggle to ensure that I am effectively handling all of my priorities, and sometimes the sheer amount of tasks that I face in both realms of my life are simply exhausting to the point that I would rather sit down somewhere than deal with them.
As working women, moms, wives, girlfriends, sisters, entrepreneurs, etc., I know that you all deal with these issues too. We get so bogged down with the millions of things going on that we sometimes lose track of time and/or the next task on the list. We may start a project, only to get interrupted with the next task that needs our immediate attention, get absorbed in that, only to return to where we left and realize we’ve completely forgotten where we were with that task, what needed to be completed, and what was next on the list.
Staying on track of our tasks and ourselves can be a major help to alleviating this stress from our lives. If we have a clear strategy in our minds as to what needs to be handled and by when, we can run our lives smoothly and efficiently. But where to begin?
First, realize that you can’t do everything. At least, not in one day, and probably not even in one month. Although I hate the phrase “take it day by day” (can you say trite and over-used?), that is precisely how we must go about our business if we are to ever get anything done. Second, know what’s going on in your life well before it arises. One strategy I have is that at the end of the weekend, I sit down and make a list for the upcoming week – any appointments that I have, work assignments that are due, business meetings, errands I know I need to run, bills I need to pay, dates I’ve made with friends and my husband – I write all of it down in a planner, including the times when these things are supposed to take place. And then, I simply start my week and go from there. If something comes up or something needs to be changed or rescheduled, it’s no big deal because I can plan around the other tasks that I’ve recorded to get it in where it fits in, as opposed to having to recall in my mind what day I have which engagement and ultimately, making an error.
In addition to staying on track in this manner, staying on track of your personal well-being is key if not supremely essential. It’s one thing to realize that you can’t do everything in a day or by yourself; it’s another to embrace it. I’m a control freak in some ways; when it comes to some things, I’d rather do it all myself to ensure that it gets done “properly” (according to my criteria) rather than to delegate it to others. This is true at work and at home. However, things like this are what often lead me into feeling truly exhausted – my battery stays fully charged for only so long before I shut down and have to recharge. It’s not that I feel I’m the only capable, intelligent person around; I just often feel that I may as well do something on my own rather than impose upon anyone else to do it. Ultimately, we know we can’t do everything, and at some point, we have to let go of the reins. By letting go of some of the responsibility, we can feel instantly at ease and much more relaxed, and thus, able to think more clearly.
Staying on track of our personal and professional lives is not an easy task, but it’s a vital one. By taking “one day at a time,” we can clearly focus on the task at hand and give it its proper attention to ensure that it’s completed efficiently. This is as true of a major project at work as it is preparing dinner for the family in the evening. Not having to wrack our brains, fearful of forgetting an important appointment, when we should be relaxing (how many times have you woken up out of a deep sleep in a sheer panic with this thought?), allows us to live more peacefully and keep work and home separate. Enjoy life – don’t stress over it!
Email your suggestions for staying on track to info@lvcmag.com!