Creating Margin ; Secrets of Simplicity

Do you find yourself in a panic as you juggle activities at work, home or in your family? Are you perpetually late wherever you go? Do you make frequent mistakes or forget scheduled appointments? Is your blood pressure rising just reading these words? Do you feel anxious or a little unsettled?

 

Rushing attempting ten things at once, contrary to popular belief, is not efficient. In reality, unlike a master juggler, you can actually only do one thing at a time and do it well.

Alas- I fear my words may stir up protest throughout the blogosphere. I hear you loud and clear from where I sit.

You already do multiple tasks at the same time, you are a mom, employee, business owner, volunteer, friend, caregiver, you are BUSY. I get it.

You also are exhausted, overwhelmed and overworked. Your “to do” list is longer than Santa’s on Christmas Eve. Your creative juices are spent, you have forgotten how to dream, you do not want to get our of bed tomorrow and it is only 9am.

Sound familiar?

Take a breath and consider the possibility of more margin in your life. 

Richard Swenson, M.D. and author of “Margin; Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial and Time Reserves to our Overloaded Lives”  describes margin like this:

Margin is the space between our load and our limits. It is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed. It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations. Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating.

We tell ourselves we need more time, more hours in the day and more time to rest- then we could get everything done.  When actually what we need is not more time, but more margin.

Margin is the opposite of overload. If we are overloaded we have no margin. Most people are not quite sure when they pass from margin to overload.

 

As you simplify your life, look for opportunities to build margin and space into your day. 

• Arrive 10 minutes early to work or an appointment
• Look at your spouse or child when they are speaking to you.
• Plan a weeks worth of meals; make a list for the grocery store and stick to it.
• Schedule for yourself consistent physical activity each week;  it is proven to increase endorphins and provides you a higher level of well-being. Not to mention, you will look better too.
• Buy an alarm clock. Move your phone away from your bedside table. If it is there, it will be the first thing you pick up in the morning and likely the last thing you touch at night.
• Put your phone in the back seat when you are driving. Look where you are going, see the beauty in the world around you. You will be safer and you will arrive at your destination less stressed and more centered.
• Look ahead. Consider planning a time-out or short sabbatical for yourself. This can be a day, an afternoon, or a weekend. Recharge and renew your own batteries. No one else will do it for you!

 

Today’s Challenge- consider your obligations and  the responsibilities you have on your plate within the next 24 hours. How can you create the margin you need to bring more space to your day and a greater level of peace amidst  busyness? 

• What can you change, delete or revise in the next 24 hours?
• Do you see some of your to-do’s as nonnegotiable? Why?
• How can you create enough margin in your life to carve out time for an afternoon sabbatical for yourself in the next 30 days? Be creative, what would it look like? A walk in the leaves, an afternoon at the book store, a sunrise at the beach? What recharges you?

If you are enjoying this journey please invite your friends, family and random strangers to join in- the world will be a better place because of it ! Share the love and bring them along as you begin to enjoy more of the life you love!  You will find a place to sign up on the top right of the screen!

Loving the comments, stories and shares you bringing to this bloggy girls heart. Thankful we are on this journey together!

Blessings!!