I tend to keep my life pretty busy. Luckily, I’m also pretty good at managing my own productivity . But recently I was blessed to be reminded about a truly valuable benefit of productivity: the opportunity to find something I’m really passionate about.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my work, and I’m excited to be able to help people get in control of the details of their lives. I enjoy empowering people that way. But because my focus on effectively managing my productivity allows me to fit more into my life, I’ve recently stumbled across an amazing non-profit that causes me to wake up every morning trying to figure out new ways to help them. And that’s very exciting for me.
The organization that has me so inspired is Girls Empowerment Network. Their mission is to foster healthy self-esteem in girls by engaging them to explore and define their personal values and to build skills that empower them with confidence and the courage to make wise choices. Having been a teen-aged girl once, I can see how valuable GEN’s services are. One of their programs is ClubGEN, which employs high-school girls to mentor middle school girls through after school programs. I’ve had the chance to hear from some of the middle school girls and the high-school girls, and it’s obvious that the impact on both sets of girls is immeasurable and priceless.
Of course I know, and I tell people often, that better managing their lives gives them more time to do things that feed their soul. But sometimes it’s easy to take things for granted, or get stuck in a rut with the things we do.
If you feel like your life is already jammed full, and you can’t possibly take on one more thing, I would say you have two choices: be careful that you are still passionate and excited about the things you spend your time on, and take the opportunity to rotate older things out and newer things in. It will keep you fresh and motivated and valuable.
Your second option is to evaluate what you have going on in your life, and see if you are really making the most of your time. If you often feel like you are spinning your wheels, and the days pass with you feeling like you haven’t accomplished much, then perhaps it’s time to get some help with your productivity. Not only will it lower your stress levels, and put you back in control, but it can also free up some time for you to do something that has a real and lasting impact, and inspires your passion and motivation in a way you’ve forgotten was possible.
Even if you don’t know what that thing is, you will never find it if you don’t create the space in your life for the opportunity.
Good luck, and thanks for reading!
