Dear reader (or listener, if you are following along with the wonderful text-to-speech feature),
In this latest episode of ‘The Diary of the Go-Getter’, I am going to answer a question that I often get asked: “How do you manage to accomplish so many things at the same time?”
The Question
I was engaging in a conversation with a new LinkedIn connection. Please note the word I’m using here; ‘engaging’, as I often see people make the mistake, or social faux pas, of jumping straight to their sales pitch, rather than engaging with their conversational partner first and forming a relationship with them. Note to the cold-callers: Can you imagine approaching a stranger on the street and saying: “Hey, I am a psychotherapist. Don’t we all have issues? Let me get yours sorted ?”
Yes, it is unlikely that a Psychotherapist would take this approach but you see my point?
But I digress; returning to the question I was asked: “I’m curious, how do you find the time to do it all ?”
Let’s dispel that urban legend
I would like to begin by dispelling this urban myth of “how you can have it all”, as it can be misleading. As a woman, I have come across this notion countless times over the years, especially in the context of women balancing their careers, relationships and raising families all at the same time. Having it all is not about striving to achieve all your goals simultaneously but about prioritising what is fundamental to your happiness in that moment, day, week, or year of for example, your five-year plan. Your priorities will change from time to time. It is good to be flexible.
It is about focusing on fewer things at a time and doing them well, rather than attempting to scatter your attention across different areas. Something that I myself have been guilty of as well.
Years ago, I attended a Business Start-up conference in London where this keynote speaker, who was charismatic and good-looking – as my friend pointed out – imparted the advice to “focus on one thing at a time.”. And I was like: “I will agree to disagree, as I’ve mastered the art of multitasking. Yes, I can manage several projects simultaneously”. Maybe I was arrogant or being a Miss Know-it-all. But that is life when we need to try things out and make our own discoveries, which was part of the journey. Yes, I am talking to those people on social media who have that post: “Things in business I wish I knew when starting out”. What was the value of having your own personal growth journey, rather than always wanting to jump straight from starting point to mastery?
The Wheel of Life – supporting my argument
If you attend a wellness event or workshop, the presenter may introduce you to the wheel of life. This is a wheel/circle representing one’s life, broken down into different segments, which will include: health, romance, work/career, family and relationships, to name some. What you’ll soon realise is how the separate segments do not weigh out equally and that you will excel in some elements to the detriment of others. For example, you may do well in business and career, but not score high on recreation and fun, as you are not giving yourself much “me-time”. Now let us look at how this can be balanced out more evenly.
Here comes the twist – “You can have it all”
The listicle:
- What is crucial to you right now? You will notice that this is tied in with your core values. Examples of my core values are connection, adventure, play, flow and autonomy. Start with writing down what is important to you.
- What segments would you like to focus on in the wheel of life? Is it family and relationships or your physical environment – do you want to move?
- Skim down the list and try to limit it to three segments. I’d recommend if you have a big goal, – like at the time of writing this post, the launch of my t-shirt line – to focus on that one goal only.
- Start taking baby steps, as it all adds up.
“I like getting attention” – Planting the seeds:
Whilst I do believe in magic and witness miracles in the form of opportunities flowing to me, it is natural and crucial to plant and sew your seeds. In recent years, I have become more adept at obtaining press attention by being featured in national publications. This may range from me imparting my expert opinion on being a digital nomad, to giving my shoutout on the latest TikTok trends to do with careers – e.g. Quiet Quitting. I have accomplished this by planting the seeds. I was working on a training project abroad when I got a request to do an interview on the theme of living in a co-living space as a digital nomad. This took thirty minutes of my time. Another time, I did an interview four months prior to suddenly receiving a flood of enquiries in my inbox about support for career transitions. I had almost forgotten that I had participated in said interview. So taking those small or incremental steps do pay off.
To conclude: Yes, you can have it all when you are focusing on fewer balls.
Question: What is the one main goal you would like to focus on?
