So, Sally Can Wait

Hello, how are you all this week? Another week passes as we continue to adjust to our new way of life. I hope you’re all well and taking care.

Do you ever find yourself saying ‘I’ve been meaning to do x, y or z or speak with Sally but life just keeps getting in the way’?

I know I say it often, wishing to do this or that but time and life just get in the way of me doing so. But why? We create our daily life and what we do in it to a certain degree, so surely we should be making time for the things we like or want to do.

So what are we doing with our life? What does ‘life’ mean to you. For some it may mean family others it could be work. My ‘life’ will not be the same as others and that’s just the way of it. There is no right our wrong answer. We each have our own things going on and for us, this is more important than anything. We aren’t avoiding things, it’s just the six things we want to do, good old Sally or painting that fence is at number six and we rarely get there. Sally may be on our mind to contact however, it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever get there. Maybe one day, maybe now you’ll make the call but just don’t beat yourself up over it.

Everyone is the same, we each have our list, whether written down or in our head and those are our priorities. Occasionally things will shift and we get to the unreachable with life having just got in the way before hand.

If there is something on your list that never sees the light of day because of ‘life’. Is there a workaround? We have gone through so much in the last few months, that adaption has become our new norm. We can’t have meetings in person, but we can use Teams or Zoom to connect, some small shops or local suppliers are now offering delivery so they can still get their products out there and we can still buy them. We can flex and adapt fairly easily so could this be the answer to our life getting in the way question?

Think about it, what is it you aren’t getting to? Who are you not connecting with that you want to? Maybe now is the perfect time to re-evaluate. Time moves on as does life, we all want to keep in touch with people, but if Sally is someone who you only message once every 5 years, then maybe she shouldn’t be on your list. How does that make you feel? You shouldn’t feel bad, as you will catch up with her in time when it’s right. Take the pressure off, I’m sure she feels the same, plus you can always see what each other is doing via Instagram or Facebook, so she will never be truly gone from your thoughts.

Ok so that really only works with people, the fence will still require painting at some point. But take the pressure off add it to a list of things to do when you are looking for a project. Life can get in the way of doing things but life is about doing things you want and never getting to things are likely things that don’t matter day to day. (If you are avoiding doing something urgent or important, then why? Are you scared? Worried? Bored? Maybe start slowly and work on it for 15 minutes each day and build up if you can).

If there are things on my work to do list I’m never getting too, then I take them off and pop them into a project list and get to them eventually or if their urgency increases they shift back onto my list. Could we take this practice forward into our ‘life’ life? Make a no pressure list, (ideally your main life list is no pressure or source of tension for you), put these never getting to things on the list and just let it be there. Eventually you will get to it and if you don’t, as time has marched on, it was maybe only something fleeting anyway.

I’ve spoken about time and it disappearing before. Doing the things you love always appears to make time move faster, whereas doing things we have to do, time drags. Therefore life getting in the way could be seen as a positive, doing what you love. If you aren’t, then take stock and see what is zapping away your time and energy. This is your life and you should do it your way and in a way that brings you joy. Too much stress and strain isn’t good as we all know. Living your life for others isn’t right either. We are seeing how fragile life is at the moment. Spend your time wisely and always try to carve out time for you.

So next time you find yourself saying ‘life got in the way’, think about if you mean it in a positive or negative way. Sometimes negative things happen that can’t be helped, but if you can choose to write your life story, then choose the chapters you want to be in it.

Stay safe, look after you, be kind and take care.

Love Emma xx 😍🌼