“Perpetual devotion to what a man calls his business, is only to be sustained by perpetual neglect of many other things.” - Robert Louis Stevenson
This year has been a test in priorities and time for me. Between work, volunteer commitments, school and personal time, I've definitely been learning a lot about time management (or more how to apply the principles of it).
Most of what I've learned this year is that I need to take more time for myself and think more about my health (as I eat pizza and drink Mountain Dew - I know, I'm working on it). I think we go through ebbs and flows - at different times in our lives, different things are priorities for us. Job duties change, family situations change. Our priorities can change in order to reach a longer term goal in our lives.
Sometimes when we go through a shift in priorities, there's a struggle. We feel guilty for focusing on ourselves. We worry we're not doing enough at work if we're not there 50 hours a week. Giving something up can be painful because it's something we used to love but just don't have time for anymore (oh, reading books for pleasure...this is for you). At times, we know what is best for us, but it's not necessarily what we want to do.
But at the end of the day, we are only good at what we do if we aren't burned out. We have to make choices - we can't do everything. Today, I made the choice to come home instead of go to yoga (though, both were excellent choices). This year I've made some big choices that will influence goals of mine in the future. And right now, my priorities are being realigned in order to best serve me. Because the best me is the one I want everyone to see.
1 comment:
As my friend Doug once wisely put it (when I was expressing my guilty feelings about taking shortcuts while George was deployed to Iraq), "Nobody's tombstone says, 'She never should have ordered that pizza.'" I won't go so far as to employ a cliche as dire as "all things in moderation, including moderation," but there is something to be said for allowing yourself a little latitude in hectic times.
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