Having Enough

January is the traditional time for me and many others in the world to revisit priorities and goals, both from last year and for the year ahead. This year I waited until mid-January to review these, allowing some time and space between the years to get a clear and calm picture of past, present, and future.

In reflecting on 2024, and especially on the slide into 2025, I noticed that I felt less calm and rested than I have in previous years. December was hectic, and the first while of 2025 is pretty much the same. I had planned to use some of the time over the holidays to work ahead on things, but the opportunities to decompress and unwind were just too tempting, so not much got done over that break. By 02 January, I was pretty much back to full days of work.

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Which led me to ask myself, “how did I get back here?” One of the benefits of working for myself is supposed to be that sense freedom, a lack of hecticness. Indeed, most of the time, when asked, “how are you?”, my response is an authentic and enthusiastic, “Great!”, with the occasional, “Excellent!”), and that does reflect my general and overall feeling about work and life. But…

Something feels a bit off, like I’m glimpsing over the edge of a steep slide into busy-ness. Worse, into busy-ness that I don’t control, which is something I wanted to avoid (Priorities 5 and 7).

How does this happen (or rather, keep happening)? Two ways, as Hemingway put it: “Gradually, then suddenly.” It’s less scope creep and more opportunity creep – always saying yes. This will sound familiar to many, especially the self-employed (me) but also the people-pleasers (also me) and perfectionists. In a way, by never saying no, we get what we want: more and more opportunities. But with a finite amount of ourselves to give, that eventually becomes a problem.

Don’t worry, I’m not anywhere near approaching burnout. With thanks to Kathy Archer for her 6-point burnout scale, I can see that I’m still at the very early stages – mild weariness with a hint of cynicism. Recognizing it early, I can act to correct it. I can also do some reflection to figure out how I got here.

I also do not regret or begrudge my current engagements or projects – if you’re in my calendar or part of my to-do list, do NOT feel bad. I recognize and value all of those as the blessings of a life full of friends, colleagues, and opportunities to contribute (Priorities 1 and 2). I also recognize that sustaining all of those, especially while maintaining my reputation and integrity (Priority 6) and nurturing my network (Priority 8), requires some adjustment.
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Blind Spots
If you’ve heard me talk about strengths before, you may recall that any strength can have a dark side, especially when we overuse it. One of my top-5 from CliftonStengths® is Responsibility – I do what I say I will do, and have core values of honesty and loyalty. Sounds good, right? (And hopefully, also sounds like me.) However, lately I’ve been stumbling into my blind spots:
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​The irony of missing this after teaching and coaching others to pay attention to their strengths is not lost on me; in fact, a friend recently pointed this out: “Don’t you teach other people this stuff?”. Yes, yes, I do, and I stand by those lessons, so much so that I’m going to apply them to myself.

Moving to enough
So, my word for this year is – enough. Not a cry of frustration (ENOUGH!) or of despair (Enough...), but a gentle, "thank you, I have enough." A recognition of good enough. 

Part of my weekly review of my work completed and to-do list will involve reflecting on how much is there and is it enough. If it is, a guiding principle for the week will be just that: thanks, I have enough. I can still be strategic and think about the cost/benefit of opportunities, just being more thorough in the cost assessment side and including myself and my time in that calculation. My priority will still be on people (after all, I am a Connector), just with a bit more thought about myself as one of the people, too.

Another wise friend recently spoke about their commitment to change for this year. They referred to this as “reclaiming my attention”, and I thought this summed it up well – a good guide in a year of aiming for enough. They also mentioned being “intentional about consumption”, on several fronts but especially about their time and attention. I’m borrowing this one, too, and taking a few concrete steps on that front including unsubscribing from the bazillion email lists that flood my inbox each day and week, and keeping just the few that I actually read regularly. Similarly, I’ll be purging the apps on my phone with the aim of minimizing the idle scrolling (my thumbs will be grateful for the break).

I’m sure there will be other strategies along the way, and that I will still occasionally find myself peeking over that cliff edge again. My goal is to minimize those times while maximizing my own contributions, growth, and opportunities for development, creativity, and relaxation. I’ll keep you posted.

Rogers Creek, BC. January 2025.

What about you – how do you recognize and deal with managing your workload to "enough"? Please comment below or email me at [email protected] with your questions and feedback. 

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