I’m a recovering overachiever, I admit it. Like many other working women and working moms, I suffer from the “I want to do it all” syndrome. My to-do lists are gigantic, filled with unending items from the smallest and most mundane, to the most elaborate tasks. From paying the mortgage to replacing the shower curtains and planning for the next department meeting… Even when I can (painfully) plow through most of them throughout the day, I’m still left with so much to do at the end of the day that discouragement quickly sets in. Along with the realization that “less is more”…
If you’re a fellow “on the verge of overwhelm” working mom like myself, you know the feeling. You also know that it’s far from being a pleasant one. What you also may be familiar with is that sinking sense of despair as you roll off the bed in the morning, knowing that you’ll probably not get through your to-do list for the day, yet again…
Lately, this same sinking feeling has been overtaking me. As an avid consumer of productivity content through books, podcasts and other mediums, I started researching ways in which I could, well…do less, achieve more, and take a break. I was recently inspired by one of Amy Porterfield’s podcast, during which she interviewed best-selling author Michael Hyatt. It reminded me of the rule of three (3)which I had read a lot about in the past.
The rule of three (3) is a rhetorical technique that originated in ancient Greece, and focuses on three (3) words to express an idea. Since three items are easier to remember than five or seven, virtually anything presented in threes may be easier to accomplish and retain. Just consider the three (3) rights listed in the American Declaration of Independence: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. Or Apple’s founder’s Steve Jobs’ tendency to build all his presentations and product launches as iterations of threes, from the three iPad models introduced in 2010, to its description as “thinner, lighter and faster” than its predecessor. The point is, the rule of three works, so why not use it in our over-booked working moms’ lives?
Here are three (3) ways I’ve personally been using it to do less and achieve more as a recovering, frazzled working mom, and recommend:
- Identify your 3 life areas
Do you tend to have countless buckets in your personal life, from family to home life, relationships, faith, spirituality and so on and so forth? I know I used to. As a result, there were so many things I was stretching myself in between to accomplish all the attached objectives. Obviously, it didn’t work in the least…
When I asked myself what three personal areas were most important to me, the answer turned out to be simpler than I thought: FAITH, SELF-CARE, and FAMILY. It made it so much easier to determine what priorities went into each of these areas, and stick to them. Even better, I picked only three priorities for each of these areas, and assigned time to each one of these.
What are your three most important personal life areas? Can you assign three priorities to each?
- Identify your 3 work areas
In the same way that I picked three personal areas, I also selected three work areas to focus on. These are aligned with my passions, talents and abilities, and comprise the bulk of my work. For me, they are: TEACHING, WRITING and SPEAKING.
Similarly, I pick three priorities in each of these areas to devote my time to and build my goals around.
What are your three work areas that you choose to focus on? Can you identify three priorities for each one of these?
- Pick your goals in 3’s
Lastly, whenever I devise my goals, I do it in three’s. I pick three major yearly, quarterly and monthly goals to address every year, quarter and month. In the same way, I break down each one of these goals into three items to address for each.
What three major goals can you focus on this year, quarter or month?
How can you use the rule of three to achieve more by doing less?
The Corporate Sis.
