Back in December of 2017, I held a management position for a large healthcare company. I had been with the company for several years and I had lived through several periods of growing pains, and upper management changes.
During my time with the company, I had taken on more and more responsibility and was currently managing departments located in three different hospitals.
During our winter “season,” the days stretch from early morning into the evening. It seems like as soon as you solve one crisis another one appears.
When I finally got to go home, I was bombarded by phone calls, emails, and the never-ending text messages.
This was my norm for years.
Does this sound familiar to you?
Are you always too busy?
To busy to eat right?
To busy to get enough sleep?
To busy for your friends and family?
Is your constant focus on work ruining your life?
Successful People Are Busy
“It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?” ― Henry David Thoreau
Our culture teaches us that successful people are busy.
We’re told that we need to get up at 3:00 am and work longer and harder than everyone else to be successful.
We spend our days in endless meetings and then we try to complete an insane number of tasks.
We either skip lunch, or we eat at our desks while we are returning calls and emails.
We don’t even like going on vacation because we think that our world might implode while we are gone.
I don’t know about you, but this is not my definition of success.
Your Job vs. Your Passion
“Your mission, whether or not you choose to accept it, is to find a way to do work that you enjoy more often than you dislike it, to be there for the people you love, and to find and achieve your own metrics for happiness and satisfaction.” —Jon Westenberg
When your job steals our passion, it begins to suck the life out of you.
It starts to feel like a prison, and you begin to look for a way to escape.
This is I felt at the end of 2017.
Enough was enough and I needed a change.
I needed to find a way to do more of the work that I enjoy.
I needed to find a way to spend more time with the people that I love.
I needed to find a way to be happy.
I needed to focus on my passion.
Since then I have made changes in my life that might help you if you are in the same situation.
Step Back and Slow down
“Maybe every once in a while we can take a break from doing everything faster and quicker to reflect on who we are and where we are going.” ― Joe Plumeri
Sometimes it is necessary to slow down and catch your breath.
I stepped off the treadmill and took some time to evaluate where I was and where I was going.
Maybe you are overwhelmed by your current situation.
If so, it is ok to slow down and evaluate where you are and where you are going.
Maybe you are on the right track, or maybe you need to make some changes to get to where you want to go.
Take some time to figure it out.
Reorder Your Priorities
“Sometimes when you’re overwhelmed by a situation — when you’re in the darkest of darkness — that’s when your priorities are reordered.” — Phoebe Snow
Stepping back and slowing down helped me realize that I needed to reorder my priorities.
“If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.” ― Stephen R. Covey
I realized that I was climbing the ladder…
Unfortunately, the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall.
I had a great job, but it wasn’t connected to my passion.
“We live in a changing world, but we need to be reminded that the important things have not changed, and the important things will not change if we keep our priorities in proper order.” — S. Truett Cathy
To make matters even worse, it was forcing me to take time away from the things that were the most important to me.
If your job is not connected to your passion or taking you away from the things that are most important to you — you may need to reorder your priorities too.
Learn To Say No
“Learn to say ‘no’ to the good so you can say ‘yes’ to the best.” — John C. Maxwell
One of the most important skills that you can learn is how to say no.
This will save you a huge amount of time.
Time you can spend on the people and things that matter the most to you.
Time you can spend pursuing your passion.
This one skill can make a huge difference in your life.
Warren Buffett says, “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
You need to learn how to say no to most opportunities so that you can say yes to the best opportunities.
Follow Your Passion
“People are always asking me about the secrets and tricks I use to get results. Sorry if this disappoints you: there are no secrets. There are no tricks. It’s simple: ask yourself where you are now, and where you want to be instead.” –Tim Grover
Successful people become successful by following their passion.
They know where they are in life and create a plan to get them to where they want to be.
They find a way to make their dreams and passions a reality.
And they work hard to get there.
There are no tricks.
Conclusion
“You can have whatever you want — if you’re willing to do whatever it takes.” Anthony Moore
Over the last couple of months…
I have stepped off the fast track and slowed down.
I have reordered my priorities and started to focus on what matters to me.
I have started to say no to most opportunities.
I have started to focus on my passion.
As a result, I am healthier and happier, and I am following my dreams and passions.
What about you?
Are you stressed out?
Overwhelmed?
Climbing a ladder that is leaning against the wrong wall?
Or, are you following YOUR dreams and passions?
What are you going to do about it?
Originally published at medium.com