Make room for space

It's the last Friday of October. Silly season officially kicks off next week when November rolls around. Historically that has meant that an already frantic pace kicks into overdrive. Packed diaries, extra commitments and responsibilities, exams, year-end functions, deadlines - you know the drill.

Luckily, it's not our or your first rodeo. You've seen it all before and you know you can handle it.

As we enter the season of more, I want to remind you that it's ok to leave some open spaces:

• When you don't know what to say, say nothing.
• An afternoon opens up unexpectedly: take the time to do something for yourself.
• Kids school sports coming to an end? Spend a Saturday morning together as a family, just hanging out.
• If you get invited to an event you don't want to attend: gracefully decline without explanation or feeling guilty.
• A news bulletin comes on which you know might upset you: switch the radio off and drive in silence for a while.
• Have a gap between online meetings? Take a break to sit with your eyes closed for 10 minutes or walk around the house, without checking your email.
• A colleague says or does something in a way that irritates you. A couple of deeeeeep breaths and let it go without responding.
• Add whatever you want to this list and say "No, I'm not taking the busy bait!

Why?

Just because an opportunity presents itself, does not mean we need to pounce on all of them. They are not all good uses of our time and energy. And often, overcommitment and distraction lead to our wheels coming off spectacularly later down the road!

Let me finish off with an example:

This past weekend I completed the Cape Town marathon for the second year in a row. Last year did not go well, so I was nervous leading up to race day. Life has been mentally and emotionally demanding recently, so I did not know if I would be ready.

I started the race slower than I typically would, to get into the swing of things and see how I was feeling. As the kilometers ticked by I felt good and started noticing points on the route I hadn't seen since last year. As the race progressed towards the halfway mark, I remembered areas and buildings from last year's race and distinctly thought: "I felt worse when I came past here last year". That was a good sign!

Going into the race I had a target time in mind, but soon realized it would not be realistic given the windy conditions, so I quickly adapted that slightly and stuck to my plan. Long story short: I finished the race 24 minutes faster than last year and recorded a massive personal best! All because I did not fall into the trap of going flat-out. I did better AND had enough energy left to walk back to my car. A massive win.

We don't always have the luxury to slow down - BUT in those situations where it is possible, choose a more realistic and sustainable pace. You'll be happy you did when you get to the end of the year!

Thank you for reading. Have a fantastic weekend!