PRIORITIZING OUR LIVES

I recently went to a Turbokick Camp. Turbokick is a group exercise format based on shadow kickboxing which is both is challenging and very fun.
While at Camp, we worked out really hard but also had many motivational speakers come and help us address different issues we might be facing in our lives.

One of the talks that stuck out the most for me, was given by Chalene Johnson, the creator of Turbokick. Chalene has accomplished a lot in her life: she has a husband and two children; she has created the Turbokick format which has really revolutionized cardio kickboxing and taken it to the next level; she has signed an exclusivity contract with 24 hr Fitness (when it comes to cardio kickboxing, they only teach Turbokick); she regularly creates new choreography (also known as Rounds) for Turbokick and has also created a home video version of Turbokick, known as Turbojam which is currently distributed by Million Dollar Body.
In the light of her accomplishments, when I heard that her talk would be about prioritizing our lives, I could not help but being excited. Clearly, being that accomplished, she must be doing something right.
I feel fairly comfortable describing myself as crazy busy, but I feel at times, that I might not be busy in the right way. I wonder sometimes if being always on the go is truly productive and really allowing me to create the life I desire.
I too have a family; I work full time, go to college and work as a massage therapist/ personal trainer/ group instructor on the side. I am also an “exercise nut job”, which, as you might imagine, takes up a lot of my time. Often people ask me how I do it, and honestly, I feel like like I am free falling most of the time. I just never seem to hit the ground. I do feel however, there must be a better way to do things.

As part of her speech, Chalene created a list of steps to take in order to bring some clarity to our lives and align what we do each day with our priorities. Here are the steps as she introduced them.

Step 1
Prioritize in writing the 5 most important things in your life based on what you want to be.

-This needs to be based off of what you really want from life. Not what you think you are supposed to want. If for you, career comes before family, then list your priorities as such.-

Step 2
Create a log of every min and how you spend it for a week. Include all of your regularly scheduled activities.

-Very time consuming, but quite enlightening. Everything needs to be listed, it is amazing how much time we spend on activities that do not further our aim in life, or are downright useless.-

Step 3
Start with those activities that support one or all of your top 2 or 3 priorities and star them.

-Personally, I am starring anything that supports my top 5 priorities. If you want to be very organized about this, you could even color your top 5 priorities and star your activities accordingly.-

Step 4
Underline neutral activities.

-Brushing your teeth, doing your hair etc... It can come as a surprise also, to find out the time we spend doing those things.-

Step 5
Circle activities or obligations that contradict your present order of priorities or that you do out of an ill placed feeling of guilt.

-This is where it gets difficult. There are those things that you indulge in that bring you nowhere. There are also those activities you undertake because of peer pressure, guilt etc... Circling them is difficult, because we all know better...-

Step 6
Make an “Immediate Action” TO DO list to remove circled activities A.S.A.P.

-Some of those activities can be (and absolutely should be) removed from your life immediately. Be honest with yourself and figure out a way to terminate them.-

Step 7
Make a transitional TO DO list for things you wish to remove gradually.

-Somethings cannot be given up quite as immediately. For example, if you are looking to transition from a job you might have to running your own business, going "cold turkey" might not be the best if said job is paying the bills. Make a transitional list, plan how you are going to ease those things you cannot remove from your life immediately.-

Step 8
Openly communicate your priorities with others.

-People need to know what your priorities are. You will find who truly supports you. Someone who pressures you to do something that goes against the priorities you have clearly communicated does not truly love and support you. Keep this in mind when picking your friends...-

Step 9
Take cues from people who really support you. Take cues from your body.

-There are those people in your life who truly care and will support you and your priorities. They are good people to listen to when in need of advise. And of course, always listen to your body. It knows... Pay attention to stress, tiredness, sickness etc...-

Step 10
Practice saying: "Can I get back to you on that?”

-Going back to step 6 and 7: learn to say no. If you are one of those people who has a difficult time doing so, ask for some time to think about it and then work up the courage to say no. Remember YOUR priorities are what has to come first.-

Step 11
Remind yourself daily: if you try to do it all: YOU WILL FAIL. Do what is important.

-Indeed. Is there anything else to be said?-

This speech and the tools given with this step by step list can be very useful in clarifying our goals and true priorities. It also allows to take an honest look at how well we actually work for our goals in our day to day lives.

I encourage everyone to give this a try. Tell me what comes of it.