Something's Got To Give: Changing Priorities as Needed

I just wanted to let everyone know that my posting frequency on all 3 of the ABR blogs is going to decrease significantly due to the fact that I am back to work and I have started my final certification class. It is a graduate level class that is extremely time consuming (mostly because I'm a perfectionist) so I'll only get a chance to post on nights that I'm not doing classwork, research, or studying for a quiz for the next 15 weeks, but once the class is over I should be able to start posting pretty regularly (at least once a week on each blog). Thank you for your continued support an understanding.

Which brings me to tonight's topic. Changing Priorities as Needed

Unless we are really lucky or really boring no ones life is perfectly predictable with a consistent schedule and consistent needs. Often we have to juggle many things at one time and as soon as we get to put down one another is thrown into the mix or we may be handed something else on top of all of our already overwhelming responsibilities. This is when you have to know what you can do without and what you can't. It may mean giving up something you enjoy temporarily for something that is mandatory or necessary. In the past, I always put working out or cooking healthy on hold either skipping workouts altogether to get required work done or choosing fast easy to prepare foods over preparing healthy foods in order to make sure I had time for everything else. For many people this is their story too. Or they try to force themselves to keep doing all the things they have always done which leads to stress, lack of sleep, becoming run down, and generally unhealthy. I have learned that I deserve time to myself, especially if that time is spent doing something for my health, i.e. taking a few more minutes to prepare a healthier meal or time to workout. To avoid other pit falls that come with trying to do everything and be everything for everyone that you are already involved with, remind yourself that priorities often change and just because you are stepping down or stepping back right now doesn't mean you have to completely give it up forever.

We also put a lot of undue pressure on ourselves to continue doing everything we've always done, we or others may try to convince us that we are the only ones who can do what we are doing. That if we step down they won't be able to find someone else to take over. In many cases this is not true. It may be difficult for them to find someone, but not impossible. So, when you are feeling overwhelmed you need to evaluate everything you're involved in. Is there a way to combine activities, is there something you can set aside, or step down from for a while until things change. If you have to make a list of all your obligations and and rank them in order of importance and value. Then determine which of your extracurricular or voluntarily activities you can reasonably step back from.  This will be different for everyone depending on their personalities, values, and lifestyles.