If you feel you are constantly fatigued, or perhaps worn to a frazzle with all your demands, you're not alone. The number one mental health disorder in America today is anxiety disorder. This results in what is called 'emergency living'. Whether it is 'good' stress or bad, we are keeping our adrenaline at an all-time high, resulting in heart disease, panic attacks and sleep disorders.
Knowing we all have a limited resource of time, how do you decide what deserves your energy on a daily basis? Here are some questions we suggest you ask yourself before taking on a new project or volunteer program. Or use these questions to evaluate how you are currently spending your time:
1. Does This Earn a Living for Me? In a material world, we all have responsibilities that cannot be ignored and some projects are pure time and energy stealers. If you are supporting yourself or your family, this is a valid question before you deplete any more of your energy on projects that are high in commitment and low in return.
2. Can I Learn from This? Can I grow as a human being by doing this particular piece of work? Will I acquire new skills or insights? If so, profitable or not, it may be worth your time.
3. Will Others Benefit from This? How? This can be an overriding consideration for many activities! But don't just stop at the first question - be sure and answer the HOW! You may be fooling yourself.
4. Will I Ever Have a Chance To Do This Again? Some opportunities are a once- in-a-lifetime deal. Is this one of them? Or are you pretending it is because you want to do it so badly?
5. Am I Doing This Because I'm the Right Person? Or Because No One Else Will? This is an absolute key question. What would happen if you didn't do it? Are you really the only person for the job, or can this be delegated?
6. What Will I Have To Put On Hold To Do This? What is the tradeoff? How will it affect your immediate and future life? What sacrifices will you (or those around you) have to make?
7. Can I Have FUN? Ultimately, if you don't need to do it and don't have to do it and you can't enjoy at least some aspect of it, then it's probably not worth doing.
Whenever you make a pro-active decision about which activities deserve your energy, you take the sting out of the most arduous and burdensome tasks. If it's what you want to be doing, and you're clear about why, then you can approach any of your activities as worthy of your fullest attention.
Barbara Rogoff opened the doors of Synthesis in 1994 with one client and a great idea: give high-touch detailed service with integrity and consistency. After spending 20+ years in corporate as right-hand to three different CEOs, Barbara learned the importance of organization and keeping a sense of humor!
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