All last week I felt behind. It’s because I was gone the week before. I went to Texas to see my parents. I want to clarify that before I left, I wrapped up the end of September and the end of quarter three at my day job. I left no work undone. The only thing waiting for me were new. Whatever emails, voicemails, and texts I received from supervisors and clients while I was away.
But, all last week I kept trying to catch up. I’m not sure what I was catching up to, but I felt behind the whole week.
I’m wondering why we are always trying to catch up. Who decided that a successful day meant getting everything done?
The thing was, I’m not sure how behind I was. Sure, there were some tasks for events happening last week that I did not do before I went out of town. (Maybe I should have done those, but I had to wrap up the month and quarter). Other than those tasks, I was not behind.
I have a tried and true method for being productive. I used it for years. I have a dedicated planner for my day job. I list out my tasks, meetings, professional development, and events for each week. Before I leave on Fridays, I fill it out for the following week.
I think we feel like we are always trying to catch up because we’re trying to do too much. I should not have scheduled 3 events in one week after being out for a week knowing that I would not have enough planning time before I left. Sure, I did it to myself. I put too much on my plate. Then I felt behind all week.
So, instead of asking, “How can I catch u. We should ask ourselves, “What actually needs my attention?” OR “What am I trying to fit in that doesn’t really belong?”
These questions allow us to decide what we put into our life before we put it there. Which will not leave us feeling like we are trying to catch up all week.
I challenge you (AND MYSELF) to try something this week. Don’t replan your whole week; that’s too much at this point. I’d you to notice how often you tell yourself you need to catch up—ask where everything you’ve chasing actually deserves a place in your life.