No Way, No How, Uh-uh, Not Gonna Happen

Hey, SuperMoms! How did you do with last month’s Priority List exercise? Any revelations? I hope you’re finding these tools to be useful in finding some balance between family and work responsibilities.

As you continue to raise your standards of what fits into your busy life, you might find that you automatically say “no” to some things. Maybe you’ve decided you will no longer grocery shop without a list, or maybe you’ll quit running errands every day and instead consolidate a list for one big errand day each week. In any case, you may find there are things you want to kick to the curb in the interest of time, self-preservation, or just personal values.

A natural progression of creating our Priority List is the birth of its opposite…I call it my No Way, Josè List. These are things that I no longer do or want in my life, in order to save my time and energy and honor my own values and goals.

Raleigh Mom Owned Small Business

Here are some of the items that made it onto my own No Way, Josè List:

  • Watching TV news
  • Working on Sundays
  • Working when I am sick or on vacation
  • Having anything in my home that I don’t love or find useful
  • Checking email and social media all day long
  • Eating fast food/drinking soda

Other ideas may include cooking dinner every single night; participating in gossip; using credit cards; doing your teenager’s laundry; eating meat; keeping clothes that no longer fit.

Pay attention over the next couple of weeks to what makes you feel edgy, drained or resentful. Is there a situation that gives you a headache every time, or something that goes against your gut feeling? Write it down.

Just as your Priority List is entirely personal and subject to change as you move through different seasons in life, so too is your No Way, Josè List.  Reviewing both lists every now and then is necessary and also can motivate and inspire you when you start to drag.

If you’ve already gathered some ideas for your own list, share with us in the comments below. Maybe you’ll spark some ideas for a fellow momprenuer!

Mom Owned Business, Raleigh Family Phtotgrapher

Christy Johnson has two amazing little girls and a rock of a handsome hubby. She photographs Raleigh’s most adorable families and blogs her photography work and personal stories at Be True Image Design. Email her with your own struggles and triumphs with work/life balance at christy@betrueimagedesign.com.

Cary Heise
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Comments

  1. working after my kids get home from school.
    i should add the social media & email constant checking too thats a tough one : )

  2. Pingback: Strategies for Balancing Life at Home : Vend Raleigh

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