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BEAUTY TIP #16- SAY “YES” TO YUMMIE. Nine Steps to an Unbalanced Life.

Posted: June 4, 2010

 

A balanced life is over-rated. Before you call me a fanatic and burn me at the TIME MANAGEMENT whiteboard; I want to ask you. “So how is time management” working for you?

Over the past ten years we have been saturated with “how to” steps for managing our most precious commodity – time. It wasn’t until the day I threw my palm pilot into the garbage that I realized I had become a slave to time management. With all the time balancing, de-cluttering, workshops, fat day timers, Microsoft calendars and every piece of technology known to mankind to help us with our 24 hour days, we are still rushing, sighing and feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.

A balanced life sounds like a wise, wonderful concept; but what happens when all of our best laid “one hour increments” in our day timer fall behind and we fall apart? In a question and answer period at my last conference someone asked me the question, “So Heidi, how do you manage your time?” It had been a long time since I looked at my daily life. I am so blessed to be a mom and grandmother; able to still work 4 days a week, write books, speak across the country and mentor younger women. It made me realize that I believe I have been able to find my strongest life- say “Yes” to the Yummie.

I am deeply passionate about leaving my fingerprint on the earth in a meaningful and powerful way.  The bible inspired me with this truth: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Psalm 90:12 NIV).  Here is what all this means to me:

1. Say “Yes” to Yummie.  God has given all of us gifts and passions to make our lives, and this world a better place to live.  Ask yourself this question, “What makes my heart pound? What keeps me awake at night dreaming, thinking planning? What do other people say you are good at?” Those are gifts God has given each of us-how dare we not use them?
2. Say “No” to clutter and useless, meaningless tasks.  Why do we feel it necessary to fill our days with things that have no value, take away our passions and our smiles?
3. Pray and ask God for His wisdom how to live each day. Do this BEFORE you write another thing into your day timer.
4. No, we are NOT responsible for everything that happens in everyone’s life.
5. Get proper rest. Fatigue makes cowards out of us. It makes us vulnerable and before we know it, we are caving in and signing up for another thing that will rob us of more energy.
6. Realize there are seasons of being totally out of balance. That’s OK. I just finished a season of speaking at many conferences.  My life has been totally out of balance for a few months, but oh my, has my heart been pounding with passion and purpose.
7. Realize this life is about relationships and not process. The bible reminds me of this in such a powerful way: “You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man’s life is but a breath” (Psalm 39:5 NIV). The breath of God within each of us is more important that the petty little tasks that consume our hours.
8. If you don’t know your gifts or passions, ask God to reveal them to you. He will gladly do it. ^“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5 NIV).
9. Enjoy and savor your one and only life.

It’s your gift from God-use it wisely.

 

Posted in: Beauty from the Inside Out, Beauty through Boldness, Freedom from Busyness, Obligations and Offenses, Overwhelmed and Undervalued