Things That Really Matter

Flashback Friday

I’m late posting today. It was a boring, but productive day at work. Not many people in the office, so I kept my air pods in most of the day and listened to my “random awesomeness” playlist. Let me just say, it was an eclectic mix of music that kept me motivated today. Some songs were perfect for this “flashback Friday” theme. Remember the Pure Moods c.d. from the 90s? They had a commercial that I guarantee you would recognize if you heard it. Some people have posted about that commercial lately and so it inspired me to add the song “Return to Innocence” by Enigma to my playlist. More like pure nostalgia listening to it today!

But there was something else in my media collection that I saw today that I thought would be good inspiration for a reflective post on the past. And that is this quote I took a screenshot of seven years ago:

Seven years ago I was saying yes to everything that I was asked to do at work. It’s why my resume was four pages long when I applied to my current job. Based on the job description, I wanted the hiring decision makers to see that I had experience doing all the things the job required. I have since shortened my resume’ down to one page…well, a page and a tenth. My degrees continue onto the second page.

It’s interesting that I saved this quote. Even back then I knew that I was saying yes too many times. That I needed to start saying no. The “things that really matter” to me were second behind all the things at work. I wanted to focus on them more but I was incapable of saying no and using my voice to say I was doing too much and could I stop doing some things.

If you’ve read my blog for any period of time, you know where this is going. I knew back then what I needed to do. I knew I was making my job my identity. And yet, when asked to make an even bigger sacrifice and go to grad school so I could take on an even more important role, I still said yes.

But this was seven years ago. Who I am now obviously would not tolerate what I tolerated back then. Now I don’t hesitate to say ‘no’ or to say what I really think about things, especially if I don’t agree with them or they make me feel a certain way.

I couldn’t be more happy that putting the “things that really matter” on the back burner is just not something I do anymore. What matters to me is my number 1 priority. Everything else is secondary and frankly, optional, in my opinion.

I encourage all of you to really think about this quote. Are you currently doing it all? How often do you say no? Are you making your highest contributions to the things that really matter? If not, what can you do to make sure that you are?

Happy Friday. Especially to the teachers that may read this. You made it to the weekend. I wish you a peaceful two days filled with the things that really matter.

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