Here are some potential effects that can arise from doing too much. Becoming aware of these is the first step towards adjusting our life situation and priorities towards a more balanced lifestyle.
* Mental Noise - Constantly thinking about the things still left to do can clutter our inner space. They become mental noise and are very distracting.
* Unable to Focus - When we are distracted by too many things, we feel overwhelmed, our focus becomes diffused, and things appear ‘foggy’ from our perspective. In this state, it’s tough to focus on our current tasks, think clearly or make fast & rational decisions.
* No Personal Life - We can become consumed by all the external achievements we are trying to obtain for the prized title of success. In so doing, we can forget to experience Joy. We forget to look after ourselves, our health, and our personal life. We become unbalanced.
* Exhaustion - When our energies are not properly managed, we feel exhausted and dis-eased in our bodies. This can physically manifest in different ways. For me, exhaustion translates to lower back pain, sleeplessness and dehydration.
* Self-Inflicted Guilt - When we become too ambitious, we tend to underestimate how long things will take and this will result in an overloaded plate. We commit ourselves to this overloaded plate, and set ourselves up for failure, unconsciously. When we realized that we haven’t done everything we’ve set out to do, we become subject to the guilt inflicted by our own minds. This can be destructive to our motivation and self-esteem.
* Hurt Relationships - When our attention is fully occupied with too many targets, we don’t have room for other important life areas, such as developing and maintaining relationships with people.
* Unsatisfied - When we have too much on our plate, we are constantly chasing after the things we haven’t done yet and forget to celebrate what we’ve accomplished. Our attention is spread out so thin, that we cannot really excel at achieving any of our goals. We become dissatisfied. Similar to self-inflicted guilt, this feeling is not conducive to healthy self-esteem.
* Failed Partnerships - When we over commit ourselves to more than we will have time and energy to do, we end up sacrificing certain goals. If we have goals with other people, such as partnerships in a startup business, we may end up disappointing them. They may end up concluding that you’re an unreliable and flaky person. At the extreme, friendships may be hurt as a result of failed business relationships. I’ve personally been on both ends of such a scenario, and I would advise anyone to try to avoid this.
Q: How do I choose what to focus on? There is so much I want to do.
A: Choosing what to focus on can be a challenging task, especially if you’ve already invested resources (time, money, energy) in other projects. The following is a serious of steps and questions to help you get started.
* Define Life Areas - List out the major life areas you wish to spend time on.
* Define Goals - For each life area define above, list out goals you like to achieve or improve upon in each of these areas. Do this on paper. Make sure that each goal is defined with a measurable target. Example, instead of saying “I want to exercise.” state, “I am running 5 miles twice weekly.” Optionally, list out your goals in present tense, as if you’ve already achieved them.
* Insert Meaning - For each of your goals, understand why each one is important to you. What will you gain if you achieved it? Write a one word description beside each goal in brackets. You can put Money as a one-word description, but it is too general. What will that money mean to you? What will it translate into for your life? Perhaps Comfort? Security? Sex-Appeal? Happiness? What does achieving this goal mean to you at the most basic level? This exercise will help us in understanding the drive behind doing what we do.
* Prioritize - Go through the goals in each area to select which is most important to you. Which do you want to work on most? Which gets you excited?
o Go down each item and ask the question, “If I had all
the money in the world, would I be working on this?“
o If your answer is yes, mark it with a P for Priority.
o Review all the items with P markings, ask yourself, “If I can be granted the realization of just one goal and I must pick now, which would I select?“
o What’s the first thing that came to mind? Listen to your instant gut reaction. Circle the number 1 next to this goal. This is your highest priority in this life area.
