My Life is Stuffed Full

My Life is Stuffed Full

I had a big ‘aha’ moment a few months ago when I realised that I am doing the same thing to my life as I do to my bookshelves and my garage… I stuff them full, and then end up with a pile of things that don’t fit, so I will squeeze them in sideways or pile them on the floor. And as soon as I open up some space by getting rid of something, I’ll fill it and then try and fit even more in!

At the moment, I am stuffing my life so full that most of the time I actually feel too tired and overwhelmed to do any of it. When my children were young, the days had a fairly flexible schedule – we might have playgroup and grocery shopping as standard activities in the week, and then I could decide ‘let’s go to the park/library/friend’s house’ whenever I wanted.  I always knew that I would miss the flexibility I had as a stay-at-home mum once that season ended. And now that my boys are both in school, I have stuffed that new ‘free time’ during school hours full of part-time work, signing up to a zillion courses and running my own business alongside household maintenance and volunteer commitments. Whoa. I’m stuffed.

I think I am still trying to come to grips with the reality that I won’t be able to do it all, and somewhere I’ll have to make priorities about what gets done and what gets left undone. It’s like the time I realised that I am a ‘word-hoarder’ (I can’t let go of a book I haven’t read just in case it’s awesome or has a super-important bit of information that will make life easier). I know that I need to learn to let it go. If only I had one more book on that topic…

I’m just going to say right here, this is what coaching is about – a coach will listen to this story and then ask you what you really want, and what you might need to let go of so that you can make forward progress towards your ideal. As you can see, I am still a work-in-progress, which is why I either work with a coach or do my own personal development. I need the challenge and the accountability not just to keep moving forward, but just to keep up!

Okay, so as a coach, what am I going to do about this? (And what useful questions can you ask yourself if you are in the same ‘stuffed full’ situation?)

  1. Identify the season: Ask yourself if something has changed, and what does that mean for you and your family? What is the most important thing right for you to focus on right now?
  2. Decide what to let go of: just like a change of season means you throw out some clothes that don’t fit any more, there may be some things that don’t ‘fit’ in the season of life you are in right now. You need to figure out what to let go of so that there is more time to focus on the right stuff.
  3. Make an action plan for the ‘priority tasks’: write down the most important things you need to get done this week and today, and then focus on getting them done first.
  4. Make a commitment: This means making a commitment to let go of or delegate some time-filling tasks (which means you have to communicate with people at home, work or in volunteer situations), and it may also mean letting go of some of the physical stuff that is taking time and cluttering your space (ie those items in the shed that you want to sell/give away).
  5. Feel okay about the fact that you can’t do it all: Life is about choices, so remind yourself that you can make choices about the bits and pieces that are ‘stuffing’ your life so full. It’s okay to let go. It’s okay to say no.

What is one thing you are willing to let go of today?

About The Author

Tanya

Tanya lives in Canberra with her husband and two sons. She is passionate about helping women to live fulfilled, purposeful lives. She enjoys reading, cooking, craft and creating memorable moments for her family.

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