It’s been a long time since I’ve heard the phrase, “You’ve come a long way, baby!” Of course, when I last heard it, it was associated with a cigarette brand that thought, and probably effectively too, that women would like the image of independence conveyed by a long, slim cigarette between the fingers of a well-dressed glamorous lady.
My, how things change. We now know that cigarettes kill us and images selling these cancer sticks are, for the most part, a thing of the past. Gone too is the idea that a woman of substance shows her value by standing around looking elegant and smoking a ciggie.
We women have made our way into halls of fame in music, sports, politics and academia. We’re professional race car drivers, military leaders, doctors, CEOs of large corporations, award-winning chefs, multi-platinum rock stars, university chancellors, Supreme Court Justices, bestselling authors, attorneys, inventors, and ambassadors around the world.
And while pay scales may not yet be equal between men and women, there are certainly many female entrepreneurs who are setting their own pay scales and doing so for those working in their organizations as well. Women have more choices than ever before, but of course, there can be stress associated with all those choices too.
If you’re a woman:
• Are you finding it hard to get done all the things you need to in a
day because they just keep piling up?
• If you work and have a primary relationship do you equally divide the work at home with your partner?
• Do you find that you are given additional responsibilities at work that are not directly in your job description?
• Are you primarily responsible for kids or parents or others who depend on you for their health and happiness?
• Will you set aside your own agenda to help someone else at work or at home to achieve theirs?
• Do you have any time left for yourself?
The same questions can be asked if you are a man, but the answers might be different. Let me know what you discover.
It is said that no one manages time; it just keeps ticking away. You can only manage yourself to make the most of the time you have.
While we women have been advancing in many areas of life, we now have
to contend with competing responsibilities and overburdened schedules that sometimes make us feel out of control. It all can make us feel like we’re spinning on a hamster wheel of our own creation.
Time management or self-management over time, if you like, is a skill and it can be learned. There are many systems and useful tools for managing our days. Setting priorities, establishing our roles, identifying our goals, tracking our projects, delegating, and enlisting support are all part of a healthy way to tackle even the most demanding days.
But until we have an internal system that enables us to know when to say “No” and to make sure that we do what is important for our agenda, we can get dragged into the universe of other people’s wants at the expense of satisfying our own needs. And that defeats the purpose of having more choices in the first place.
If we continue doing for everyone else at our own expense, we can experience overwhelm or burnout, which can lead to stress, anxiety, or show up in other undesirable behaviors we do to try to relieve our emotional pain.
If you are feeling some of these challenges or are looking for more effective ways to make the most of your time, I can help. Check out my Program Packages or Book A Session today to start busting your stress and put yourself back on your to-do list.