Like Nike, Just Do It – But Know When Enough is Enough

“You make time for the things you care about.”

Well, this is misleading.

Our community has made many strides to ensure we all know that we are capable of doing what we truly want to do. From the “Year of Yes” to Nike’s latest “Just do it” campaign, when do we acknowledge how thin we spread ourselves (i.e. participating in places that don’t further our personal goals)? We need to think more about what our lives look like now, and what we want them to look like.

Do What You Love

In the words of Kaepernick, “Believe in something. Even if that means sacrificing everything.”

Consider your long-term goals and dreams, and find a role that aligns with these aspirations. Spend more time fixing your schedule and managing your time in order to optimize your ambitions. If that means sacrificing your current lifestyle to achieve a better, more fulfilling life/career, go for it but learn to distinguish between your goals and everyone else’s goals for you.

Know Your Limits

Do you feel your stress levels rising when thinking about everything on your plate? Do you constantly feel like you’re obligated to say yes when in actuality you want to say no? Are you sacrificing sleep to get things done? Are your relationships becoming strained due to your various responsibilities?

You’re close to your limit.

Friends and loved ones tend to utilize the logic that if you care about them you could make time for them at a snap of a second. Though valid, this is a flawed logic. First, how many individuals can you spend quality time with at any given moment before cutting into your personal time? Second, it’s okay to see individuals less frequently, so long you can maintain proper communication and understanding with them. Third, it is also okay to limit your involvement in everything, especially with projects that do not align with your goals.

What Matters More

Understanding that everyone has their limits is the first step to managing your time better. Now, let’s consider the following, to get you on the ideal track for you:

1. Make a list of all your weekly tasks (including sleeping, eating, daily care, etc)
2. Break out how many hours of the week each task is consuming
3. Rank from highest to lowest of priority
4. Jot down the time left over in a given week after your current tasks
5. Make another list of things you wish you could do
6. Consider what is important to remove and add into your weekly schedule
7. Make the necessary changes (easier said than done but do your best!)
8. For anyone who says – “You make time for the things you care about” – Show them your schedule.

We Are Different

There’s the Oprah’s, Jay-Z’s, Bozoma’s (and etc.) in the world, and then there is you.

We are all simply not the same. So, after analyzing your time spent, don’t compare yours to anyone else’s. Everyone operates differently, so it is okay if you aren’t operating on the same level as someone else. What is important is knowing where your time is going, and utilizing it to do things you are truly passionate about.

So yes, we make time for the things we care about. But there are only 24 hours in a day. Choose wisely.