Over the past couple of weeks, and looking at what I have on my plate in the upcoming weeks, I’ve been feeling overwhelmed. With the next two weekends out of town and events almost every night, on top of many more things and people I wish I had time for, I feel like there needs to be another 4 hours or so to every day.
In other words: I’ve been spreading myself thin. I’ve been saying yes to everything and even seeking out new opportunities when in reality, I just don’t have the time.
I realize many of you reading have probably been dealing with these feelings for years, but since I’d always operated on a student schedule, I always managed to find time for the things I want to do. On top of that, I’ve never had so many opportunities and new friendships present themselves as I have in these past couple of months.
I think it’s important, whether we’re feeling overwhelmed or not, to take the time to sit down and figure out what our priorities in life are and learn to say no when we need to and learn to put things off until we have a little more time. I first made a list of everything that is going on in my life, and then rearranged it to what I felt my priorities should be.
Here’s what I came up with:
God & time in prayer: calms and centers me, and reminds me of my purpose
Time for myself: sleep, exercise, food prep, relaxing when I have the chance. Although it sounds selfish, if I don’t take care of myself I won’t be able to do anything below this on my list, or at least do any of it well
Family (& Molly): although I don’t see them often, my family is my biggest support system and should always take priority
Job Search: need I say more? Having found my temp job, I’ve relaxed a bit (and had a lot less time) but this still needs to take serious precedence in my time
Social time with friends: old friends, new friends, etc. An important aspect to this is learning which friends lift me up and making them a priority over others
Junior League: meeting all my membership requirements as well as meeting new friends through the league
Blog: As much as I love my blog and have worked so hard to grow it, I have to remember that it’s a HOBBY and not a requirement
Anything else I can’t think of: because clearly it can’t be that important?
Although unimportant things often take precedence in our mind, no matter what your priorities are, it’s important to re-evaluate them every once in a while and re-evaluate what you spend your time on.
This isn’t to say that I won’t ever spend a Sunday watching my favorite show, or accidently spend my time in the morning picking out an outfit instead of time in prayer. I’m not perfect, I’m human and I make mistakes. My point here is that when I’m feeling overwhelmed, it’s important for me to take a step back, re-think what I’m doing, and try my best to focus on what’s important.
What do you do when you’re feeling spread thin?
What are your top 5 priorities?