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Life Coach
Draw the line |
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“Freedom is choosing your responsibility. It’s not having no responsibilities; it’s choosing the ones you want.”
– Toni Morrison |
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ave you ever found yourself staring at a pile of work, overwhelmed and unsure where to begin? You start a project; an email alert prompts you to check your inbox, only to be distracted by a phone call from a colleague with an urgent question. Soon you feel like a hamster running around on its wheel. If this feels familiar, it may be time to ‘draw the line’.
Drawing the line
Use this simple yet effective tool to prioritize. First, write down all you need to do. Pick your top three priorities; move these to the top of the page and draw a thick line below them. These are your focus areas – your ‘above the line’ priorities. Do not work on any other tasks until your ‘above the line’ priorities are done. Hang at eye level, as a reference to stay focused. Repeat daily or weekly. Sharing your ‘above the line’ priorities with colleagues and family members provides transparency to manage external expectations.
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Align your life
Rachel is a successful executive just returning from her first maternity leave. A perfectionist who gives 100% to everything, she stressed about maintaining performance levels at work with the added responsibility of motherhood. I asked her to ‘draw the line.’ Her top three life priorities were family, work, and self-care. She had been stressing about things ‘below the line’. This insight prompted her to reprioritize her life. Rachel now delegates household chores to her child’s caregiver, who’s happy to help; she also made a choice to release guilt she felt when she declined certain social events. Rachel keeps her ‘above the line’ list handy as a regular reminder of her priorities.
If you feel overwhelmed and not sure where to begin, stop and ‘draw the line’. H&L
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