Prioritizing

Dress// Sandals// Bag (lots of beautiful options here)

Striped Sweater// Sunglasses

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Today's post has nothing to do with the photos above, but I'm sharing them anyway because I just love this outfit. The dress is so perfect whether you are out playing a round of golf or running out to the grocery store or grabbing lunch with your girlfriends. It's a stretchy sports-like material so it doesn't wrinkle. In my opinion, this makes it great for travel, too! I'm wearing a size small and would say it fits true to size if anything size down because it is very stretchy! 

I thought I would share a thought I had with you all the other day while I was on the treadmill in an Orange Theory class. I do my most random thinking when on the treadmill but sometimes they are thoughts that are worth typing out and sharing! 

Many times while I am on the treadmill, I think about my to-do list and what I need to get done. Text/call someone, respond to certain emails, pick up something at the grocery store, write a thank you note, send a birthday card to someone, submit a draft for a collaboration, make sure a bill is paid, vacuum the rugs, schedule Henry a bath, make a dinner reservation, etc. There is so much to remember and somehow, it all floods into my brain while I am on the treadmill! 

As I get older, I feel like the responsibilities have become greater. No longer is it to just be a good friend, call your parents here and there, and clean a small apartment. Now, it's more dinners to plan out with friends, a larger house to keep up with and clean, more family events to attend, more date nights out with my husband, etc. Typically they are all good things, wonderful really, and I am truly and profoundly grateful for it all. 

BUT! It's a lot and sometimes I get overwhelmed. Keeping up with life can be a lot! It can be stressful even if it is all (well, mostly) positive. Friends, family, pets, home, social life, relationships, travels, work, etc. 

I am someone who wants to do it all. I want to go to every dinner party, learn to play golf with my husband, take Henry on very long walks, wear cute outfits daily, create the best content I can for my business, go on lots of trips, keep a spotless home, keep in touch with all of my girlfriends spread around the country, decorate our home, make time to watch the latest and greatest Netflix series, keep the refrigerator and pantry perfectly stocked, make sure all of my plants outside are thriving, cook healthy homemade lunches and dinners, participate in the neighborhood activities, organize all of the drawers and cabinets in my home... I mean I could go on and on and on!!

I think the number one thing that I have learned through the years is that I certainly can do it all. I am capable. BUT, again, there is always a but. I can't accomplish it all in one day or week or even month or even year! 

At one point, I would always be stressing myself out trying to fit it ALL into each of my days. My goodness am I glad I figured out that this was no way for me to live! 

I quickly learned that life is all about prioritization. I can do all of these things but just have to figure out what is the biggest priority and those priorities change. I think of priorities like the S&P 500. At any minute of any day, a priority can be shifting to become more or less valuable in my life based on what's going on in my life!

So now when I feel overwhelmed I take a minute to pause and create a prioritized list. I typically keep track of it all in the notes section of my phone. A simple example: sending out a birthday card is a time-sensitive thing but organizing under the sink does not need to be done this minute. 

In my notes, I typically have different sections. I don't really label the with a title, but there is just a page break to separate them but I guess if I had to create labels, they would be 'urgent, soon, and can wait'. So, something like sending out a birthday card would be on the 'urgent' list but it can also be on the soon or can wait list depending on when that person's birthday is. For example, my mom's birthday is October 21st and I would add sending out a birthday card to her on the 'can wait' list on October 1st, then move it to the 'soon' list on October 15th, and then add it to the urgent list on October 19th. See what I mean by the stock market? Totally oversimplified, but you can see how a priority moves and shifts!

This all sounds so obvious, but sometimes I need to remind myself that I cannot do it all in one day and that taking a minute to organize and prioritize it all is so helpful to keep that overwhelming feeling at bay. So hopefully this serves as a reminder to someone reading that you can do it all but just not do it all in one day! You know what they say 'Rome wasn't built in a day'!