Very rarely do I wake up in the morning when my alarm goes off feeling refreshed and well rested. Immediately my brain kicks into gear and starts telling me to hurry, get up, get the kids ready, get to work, there’s so much to get done.
I’ve noticed that I’m always telling myself there’s so much to do and I’m hurrying through things to get it all done. I think that if I can find a way to get my house chores done faster, then I can go to bed sooner. Or if I can blow through my unread emails quickly, then I can move onto my next project.
I think this is one of my hidden powers. I can do the dishes faster than anyone I know. I can skim a long email like a champ.
Then Monday night happened. I crawled into bed around 1:00am exhausted from a long day. Around 2:00am, one of my kids woke up because she was not tired. After trying to rationalize with the “not tired” 4 year old, she finally went back to sleep around 3:00am. 3:30am rolls around and she is up again and this time everyone is up. We try getting everyone back to bed and around 4:30am, but realize it’s not going to happen and give in. I turn on the TV for the kids and get in the shower to start my day.
Taking the day off to sleep was not an option so I just decided to cut myself some slack. I was not going to pressure myself to get through everything. I just told myself to do your best and something was better than nothing.
You guys. The craziest thing happened.
I got SO much more done than I usually do.
I was not constantly thinking about my to do list, or the next things, or how I needed to hurry up and get it done. I just got to work and was so much more effective at it.
One of my coaches uses the phrase I love to “run the mile you are in.” I love this and constantly tell myself it all the time, but this belief that I have so much to do has been winning out lately.
The next night I caught up on sleep and found myself slipping right back into the slightly panicked frenzy of plowing through the day. I’m practicing cutting myself some slack and just focusing on the one next task at hand.
There will always be more to do, but the way to do more is not by focusing on the amount to be done. It’s by doing what amounts to something.
If you are tired of feeling overwhelmed about everything you need to do, I can help you feel more on top of things. Grab some time on my calendar and let’s connect.
You got this,
LB
