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Stretching.....oh that word! What does it mean to you? The definition of Stretching is " of something soft or elastic) be made or be capable of being made longer or wider without tearing or breaking. To me, I find myself "Stretching " all the time, what I have had to work through though is the unhealthy version of "Stretching" myself to thin. As women, we wear many many hats, and depending what phase of life you are in your hats are many, and plenty. I did have a misconception that when my kids grew into their adult roles, that I would take that "mom" hat off. Well....that's another blog for another time, but the hat actually grew ! I wanted to share 3 tips on how you can "Stretch" your life in a successful way that will keep your boundaries in a good place and keep you in joy for daily life.
1) Take 10 minutes the night before to plan the next day. I am still a "day runner" planner girl. In my youth I loved checklists and trapper keepers. I haven't changed much, and i do work hard to plan my weeks and even my months ahead of time, my night before 10 minute stretch is just to make sure my next day is planned, organized and intentional to the goals I have set. (see number 4)
2) Know your priorities. Every day you will be faced with the unexpected, obsticals, a phone call a person that was planned, etc. It's life, it happens. Sometimes we have to follow the Lords plan for our day, like taking an extra minute to talk to a stranger or lend a hand, or be patient as we have 20 people in line ahead of us and we have to pass the patience test, etc. Know your priorities if you have to change something in your day or ensure that 1 or 2 things can be moved to tomorrow and taking 10 extra minutes to send that important text etc. Just know some things can be moved and some things just stop and take the time to finish the task. My biggest example was the other day, I was late for a meeting due to talking to a co-worker about a life issue that I was able to help her with. I did also need to ensure I answered a message back to someone via text and wasn't able to do that when I planned. I did however message her quickly and said I will get with you asap so she had a response. Then that evening I was able to circle back to answer her fully which resulted in a big win for me. I made a note on my google calendar to make sure I responded to her that night. Be flexible and know your priorities.
3) Set and Know your Goals! This one is the most important and will drive the rest of your plans each day, week and month. Did you know that only 10% of Americans set goals? Research shows most do not and the biggest reason is "fear of not accomplishing" the goal. Ask yourself "What is the most that would happen to me if the goal is not met?" Most likely you won't die or devastate your life, you will get ahead and gain confidence and get closer to the goal then you were before. I have a yearly goal in each category and then I track them monthly with ACTION STEPS for each goal. Setting a goal that will Stretch you and then achievable actions steps is the true formula for success.
My 5 Goals I set each year are.......Health, Relationship, Business, Finance, Personal. I use visuals and monthly tracking sheets (Construction paper and stickers are my tools that I love)
In Closing, "Stretching" yourself will keep you in joy, and working hard for the Lord, In him we are warriors!
--Shannon
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