Over the past few weeks I’ve had various conversations about ‘doing it all.’ Some of those conversations, were subconscious pep-talks I had to give myself on my subway ride to work and others were with close girlfriends who are dealing with the same woes. So, what do I mean when I say ‘doing it all?’ I mean, how do people successfully rise in the ranks of their 9-5 jobs, get to the gym everyday, eat a balanced diet, dedicate time to a creative side project, show up for family just as they have for you, have hobbies, indulge in a social life, be there for friends at a drop of a hat, the list goes on and on. For starters, I know I’m not a mother or a wife or even an integral part of a household, so I KNOW that things are going to get worse more complicated. BUT, that definitely doesn’t discount how I and many other millennial women are feeling right now.
So we know that social media has set these ridiculous expectations of what our lives should be (and yes, I know I’m contributing to it as a blogger). And we hear time and time again that you need to prioritize based on what matters most to you as an individual. BUT, how does one decide if being healthy means more than the passion they have for their job? Or if the joy you get from friendship is more important than the creative side project you’ve put your entire life into? Or the therapeutic release you get from a Friday night out on the town is more important than than showing up to your cousin’s baby shower?
These aren’t easy questions to answer, despite how many pro/con lists I make, there just never seems to be enough time in a day, week, month or year to ‘do it all.’ So now, I’m faced with an even more irritating reality– I have to be okay with ‘doing it all’ in a pretty sub-par manner. It is already impossible to ‘do it all’ so ‘doing it all’ to perfection is just unachievable for me at the moment.
So what do I do? What do I do when I’m frustrated with my sub-par way of ‘doing it all?’ I take a minute to realize that practice makes perfect. Right now, I’m pretty terrible at ‘doing it all.’ I show up to events late, I’m pulling all nighters to get all of my work done and I find myself finding little pockets of time (like elevator rides) to call/text my friends and family. BUT, just like everything, I’m optimistic that I will get better at all this. And for right now, I have to be okay with just ‘doing enough.’
Now, I have a challenge for all of you. I think we need to start talking more about ‘doing enough’ instead of ‘doing it all.’ We need to support that, we can’t judge when somebody doesn’t get to the gym or when that girl leaves the office early, we need to celebrate that person ‘doing enough.’ If you can’t tell, this is something that I’ve given A LOT of thought to (hence how this post is a little all over the place). So I’m starting the conversation and opening the floor, I’d love to hear about a time that you felt you were ‘doing enough’ in the comments!
Thank you for sharing- I think we all feel like we aren’t doing enough because we aren’t managing to do it all. I like this way of thinking much more!
You are doing great.. Keep it going 🙂
Doing enough to get a job done well makes more sense than trying to do it all.
Yes to doing enough! As a single parent I know I’ll never be able to do it all. I’ve had to learn to let go of the feeling of not being able to keep up with everything, but it’s simply not possible. So for now the laundry is washed but unfolded and some dishes are still in the sink, but the kid is fed and loved, the pets taken care of, the essentials are done, and that is enough.
I think you are doing pretty well at doing it all!!!! It all depends on what one’s “enough” consists of. Sometimes someone “doing enough” can actually be
more than doing it all!!! Cut yourself some slack…You’re incredible!
Echoing Marie Sr’s comments, you’re definitely doing more than enough! Sometimes it’s just about taking making time for yourself too. But I like this mindset and definitely will put it to use. Making it to work everyday and keeping up with texts is enough for me. lol