True Confessions of a Life Coach

Years ago, when my workaholism was at its peak, the common refrain in my annual reviews was “Carla takes on too much, and I’m afraid she’ll get burned out.” And that is exactly what I did!

I’ve come a long way since then. But, lately, I confess that I’ve fallen into old patterns. Let myself get overwhelmed. Taken on too much. While I’ve got decent balance in my life now, taking on too much is a mistake I have to guard against.

Sometimes I say “yes” without really thinking through the ramifications. Other times I underestimate how much time something will take…Here are 3 steps you can take to reduce your load:

1. First of all, don’t beat yourself up! 

• You're not alone. It happens to the best of us!

• Our society glorifies busyness, so you might feel guilty for taking some things off your plate. Remind yourself that the benefits will be worth it...

2. Look for immediate steps to reduce stress.

• Can you bow out of any commitments?

• Delegate tasks to someone else?

• Make a process more efficient?

• Negotiate for more time?

3. Take time to examine your priorities (just take 1/2 hour).

• What are the top 3-5 priorities in your life right now? (personal and work)

• How much time are you devoting to each of these priorities?

• Do you want to make any changes to better honor your priorities and values?

The place to start is becoming aware of the power of choice.

While we may not think about it, we make dozens of choices every day. There are only 24 hours in a day, so when we say “yes” to something, we are saying “no” to something else. Sometimes our default reaction is to think we don't have a choice. But we do.

As you consider how you spend your time, ask yourself:

• Does this task/activity get me closer to my priority goals?

• Does it honor my values?

• Is it more than a "good" way to spend my time? (You might want to bypass the "good" to go for the "great."

Let me know how you're making different choices!