Essential Ingredient#1:
Evaluate Your Priorities
The French philosopher Rene Descartes said, "I think
therefore I am." Our modern day version has become "I do
therefore I am." So many of us live by the mantra "I have to
keep up," "I am what I do," "I have to push myself," "I have to
prove my worth," "I have to keep going." While many of you
thought that you left peer pressure back in the halls of high
school, it's still very much in operation in our adult lives.
Many women have one clear priority--get through the day.
Sure, no one will deny the importance of that, but it's simply
not enough. Many women go through life on autopilot. You
rarely stop long enough to consider how you spend your
time and energy. Yet, without determining whether your
priorities match your reality and your values you will
continually be out of synch with yourself.
Living a priority-centered life means balancing
responsibilities to others with responsibility to oneself;
obligations with enjoyment, work with play, activity with rest.
It means finding a natural rhythm to one's day-to-day life that
will support an atmosphere of fulfillment. It means getting
your priorities straight.
Think of a typical day and a typical week. Think about how
you spend your time. Ask yourself, how much time do I
devote to my family? What about health and fitness?
Religion or spiritual practice? Work? Personal interests and
hobbies? Social time? Finances? Friendships? The
categories you choose may look somewhat different from
these, so feel free to customize them to reflect your life.
Make a list in order of what gets the most to the least
amount of your time. How you spend your time will make
known your priorities.
You may be surprised to discover that there's a discrepancy
between what you thought your priorities were and what they
actually are. It's time to be honest with yourself and see
what your life is telling you. Is your life balanced? Are you
overextended in one area? Is there an area that you're
neglecting? What percentage of your time is devoted to
caring for others? What percentage is spent caring for
yourself and doing things you love? Are you in synch with
your core values? Are there any adjustments you need to
make so that your life more closely reflects your values?
One of the greatest challenges women face is balancing the
wishes and expectations of other people (especially your
family) with your own needs and desires. You must hold
your priorities sacred. You must invest your time and energy
in what you value. You have to commit yourself to make
time for what's important every single day.
Ask yourself every day, is this what I want to be doing? If the
answer is "no," you can alter your course a little each day.
Changing course is a process. It happens slowly,
incrementally, but if you are persistent, you will end up
where you want to be.
Food for Thought
If you had only a year to live, what would you do differently?
It's time to take action. Whatever you've been waiting to
do--Just Do It!
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