The Art of Creating Projects that Are Good for Us [Episode 338]

Because I think all of us can find that we burn ourselves out.

We show up for all the people who need us.

We are trying to get stuff done and being a support and, you know, all the things of life.

But then we could go into the holiday season feeling completely depleted.

So how about we start today and be replenished and go into the holidays with a full battery and with habits that will keep us feeling energized even when life might feel depleting for most people.

And I've done something that's been very helpful, [laughs] which is making a current project called Personal Replenishment.

That's my only current project in the for me category this month, and I just wanna share a little bit that's helped.

So first, I'm learning to be even more discerning about where I actually need to spend my time and energy.

I feel like this has to be something that we believe and understand before we put personal replenishment as a project because one of the biggest lies that we often tell ourselves is that everything is urgent and everything needs me right now.

I find that's one of those little lies that'll pop up in my head when there's 18 competing needs, and I feel like, ah, all of them need me right now.

That's obviously an all or nothing thinking, and it's helping me to recognize that, hey, there are a lot of important things that we can do, and we can make a difference in thousands and probably millions of places.

But other people also can contribute, and a lot of things can wait.

And there's no way that we can sustain ourselves if we hold on to this belief that everything's urgent and everything needs me.

That's why even just having a current projects list and being wise about what we put on that list is so critical to having this calm mind and organized life.

Because when you can have a very focused, small list of the few projects you're going to work on that month, you're telling yourself, "This is what is important right now, and other things can wait.

And if something needs to switch priority, we can switch it, but we're not going to try to do all of it at the same time." Just that one message, if that's all you take from this podcast, it's going to calm your mind and calm your body and help you to focus.

Next, I'm recognizing the subconscious weight of my lists, like, like, um, more acutely, I think, where sometimes when I have extra, you know, an extra full current projects list, maybe it's all eight projects, maybe they're all a little big, I, I ...

In the past, I haven't recognized how much it subconsciously weighed on me because I would think, "Oh, yeah, I'm working on through the month.

It'll be fine." But just having all of these expectations written down for myself, it subconsciously kind of tugged at me.

So then when something unexpected came up or I felt a little more tired one day than I thought I would be, I would think, "Oh, I have so much to do." And it's that thought in our brains, "Oh, I have so much to do," that's what makes us kind of get on edge.

When we have just a few things written down and our expectations are very, very manageable, then you think, "Oh, I have some things to do when I have the energy to do them." And then you don't feel as stressed out.

But it's that, it's these little nuances that make such a difference.

So I did have multiple things on my current projects list, and I actually took a few of them off, and in the for me category, and I replaced it just with personal replenishment.

Now, what I did remove, I'd been working on my vision statement.

I've been working on this for months.