Don’t get me wrong here. Your blog could very well be your livelihood — your bread and butter even. And that’s not what I’m trying to confirm or disprove in the title, when I state that “your life is more than your blog”. What I’m wanting to convey in this post is that blogging could be an important part of your life, but that the life you’re living is made up of so many other intricate components that have incredible value and are worthy of having your attention — just like the blogging.
But are you giving those other areas of your life that same level of focus? Are you? Are you really?
I totally get it. You’re just one person; and it’s virtually impossible to give equal amounts of concentrated effort to every facet of your life. Some things have to go by the wayside, while others get all of the pampering. We’re forced to figure out each day (in the same 24 hours we’re allotted each day) how we’ll live our lives.
Many of us are failing, though. We’re failing at making the right choices in how we choose to spend that fleeting commodity called time. And, I can confidently make that statement because I literally observe the so-called “work-life balance struggle” every day in other peoples’ lives. But more importantly, I’m living that reality out in my own.
What matters most to you? Seriously.
I mean do you ever stop to think about what it is you spend most of your time doing? Or, have you been sucked into the matrix effect of an alternate world that has you captivated, continuously spinning in a false reality cycle that won’t let you actually see the true life that you’re living?
If you’ve had a chance to experience your childhood and make your way over to the ranks of adulthood, then I’m sure you’ve had moments to recognize the incredible gift you’ve been given — the gift of life. But, do you ever get really deep in your own soul-searching process to truly meditate on the fact that:
How you choose to use that gift determines the quality of the existence you get to experience on this Earth?
We make decisions every day and all the time. And I’m afraid that, when it comes to focusing on those areas of life that help extend our lives, we fail miserably. Case in point: look at the state of our overall well-being. I’m talking about our overall well-being as in body, mind, and spirit.
All you have to do is simply look around at the human condition. Sure, human beings can be attacked from outside forces that we had no idea were coming — like Coronavirus, for instance. And, our world can be totally turned upside-down and inside-out. Many people today are suffering in so many ways from outside attacks that they have absolutely NO control over. And I could do a whole series of posts about how you can only “Control What You Can Control” and try to do the best you can with the “external” hand of circumstances you’ve been dealt.
(Well, actually I have written such a series of blog posts and probably should link them here. But, I’m not.)
And, why not?
Well, my focus in this post is not about the “external” hand of circumstances you’ve been dealt in life. It’s about those “internal” areas of focus that you can control but you choose to put off for another day, devalue the importance of, or ignore altogether.
Let me give you a real-life example, so you’ll have some context to what I’m talking (or typing) about.
Okay, you might know from other blog posts that I battle with getting adequate amounts of sleep each day. If I’m truly honest with you though, it’s pretty much self-inflicted. I’m not going to blame-game anyone but myself in this matter, because I’m the only one who can fix the problem.
It’s all about time management (or mind management as I heard one author say).
I haven’t quite mastered the whole time management thing. You know I’m working on it though, because I totally promote productivity in post after post here at Degrees of Maternity. I discuss how procrastination and inactivity can halt one’s progress in life, about how work-life balance is a must-have in your overall well-being, how organizing your day/week is a sure way to GET THINGS DONE, how health factors into your mindset and productivity, how spending time on the things that will get you closer to your end goals is key (and dropping the wasteful excess is needful), and yada-yada-yada.
Yes, I know the stuff that matters. But knowing is only half the battle.
Having the knowledge but not applying that knowledge to your life or applying it in a skewed manner is just plain stupid. I try not to use that word much when I’m talking about others, because it’s just been ingrained in me that saying it isn’t very nice. But, I’m talking about myself in this case, so I give myself permission to use it on myself. It’s just plain stupid to forgo my sleep which can negatively impact my life in both the short and long run.
Let’s get into this real-life example of mine.
Why in the world am I up at almost 3 am on Thursday working on this blog post, when I have normal functioning hours (when the sun’s up) to work on it, since it’s not being published until Friday morning? Maybe it’s because I crashed before 9p Wednesday evening (when I actually intended to work on it) due to my exhaustion from lack of regular peoples’ sleep (6 -7 hours of sleep per night on a consistent basis). How can I possibly think that I can operate on super human mode, where sleep deprivation can never hurt me?
No, I know I’m very much a normal human being and that lack of sleep is bad on so many levels. Yes, I have that knowledge and am fully aware that continuing on a sleep deprivation mode hinders health, productivity, etc. And, I also know that me staying up into the wee hours of the morning to work (or getting up in the wee hours of the morning to work) is actually not going to help me get that much further ahead in everything I’d like to accomplish in life. Working in such a mode is counterproductive at best.
Yes, I know all of that!
So, why am I functioning as such, you might ask. Well, I guess I’m just plain (insert that word that I mentioned I don’t like saying very much). No seriously, I don’t think I’m that at all. I just need a little mindset adjustment that will play out in consistent real-life application of the knowledge that I already have.
Folks, I’m well aware that my life is more than my blog and that sleep is one of those essential areas of focus in my life (among others) that I must take more seriously if I want to be around to blog in the first place.
I don’t want there to be a misconception that writing for the blog has solely contributed to my sleep issues. Nor do I want others thinking that all I need to do is just cut down on the amount of writing in each post or the amount of times I post in a week and then I’ll have more time to sleep or focus on other areas in my life. No, my dear. I wish it were that simple. The writing component is only part of the blogging experience. There are sooooooooooo many other content creation and business activities that make up a blog and all of them have contributed to my consistent lack of sleep. No doubt about it.
But, enough about me. I think I provided an adequate opening argument for how any one area of your life can seem to take over and cause you to build some self-destructive habits that you’ll need to break. And, these damaging habits must be broken so you can have a quality of life that allows you to enjoy and function successfully in all aspects of your life.
I lack sleep (among other things), and so do many others. Therefore, here’s what I propose . . .
Next week, I’m going to focus in on you and continue this discussion about “Your Life is More Than Your Blog”. And just in case you were thinking, “who is she to tell me anything when she doesn’t even have her stuff together?” Well, who I am is just the reality check you need. I’m in the thick of acknowledging the fact that I need some life adjustments and have every intention of doing so. (What about you?)
I’ll never silence myself or make myself feel guilty for encouraging and/or cautioning others to do better, even though I struggle with issues myself. I’ll never pretend like I’m perfect or have life all figured out. In fact, no one should, because no one does. And in knowing that, I tend to hold fast to the idea that life is a process and it’s our job to work on it for the better. (Check out the Degrees of Maternity tagline.)
Wow! It’s going on 4 am (as I type this) and I actually feel a little better in getting all of these words out in this post. Yes, I’m tired and I’ll go lay down for a few minutes until I have to get back up to do the early morning routine. But, one thing I can truly say about writing is that it’s therapeutic for me. Now, if I can just get my time (mind) management and schedule working better so I can do my therapy at more opportune moments in the day, that would be great.
Don’t forget: part 2 is all about YOU. So, you’ll want to come back for next Friday’s continuation post.
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