by Jeanne Takenaka, @JeanneTakenaka
I suspect we all walk through busy seasons, where we have too much going on for our own good. Can I hear an amen? In April and May . . .
- I edited and submitted a short story for a book releasing next year
- Judged a few writing contests
- Worked on editing my own manuscript
- Shared a guest blog post
- Kept up with my own blog posts
- Researched and taught a class on blogging and SEO
- And more
And I tried to stay sane with real-life events also happening. Teen boys and a husband who travels = time commitment.
At times, we have to roll with the busy seasons of our lives. And sometimes we need to “just say no.”
How do we roll with the busy seasons we can’t avoid?
When we come into a season that is B.U.S.Y., we need to keep a few things in mind:
- Pray for God’s priorities, direction, and mindset going into those busy seasons.
- Prioritize what’s most important in our lives. Book deadlines are important. Make sure we meet these deadlines. Our publishers will appreciate this, and this strengthens the relationship between us and our publishers.
- When possible, plan ahead. If we know we’re heading into a busy season, let’s plan ahead so that we don’t experience as much stress when we are in the middle of busy-ness. My summer is crazy busy. I’ve begun writing blog posts to schedule so I am not having to do this in the middle of traveling and spending time with those I love.
- Let some things go. When we have additional things on our calendar, it’s beneficial to let some things go for a time. We can’t do it all . . . even if we do wear a cape.
- Be wary of outside commitments. Be slow to add anything to our schedule.
How do we discern when to say no?
- Pray before adding another commitment to our calendars. God knows what our futures hold; we don’t. When we ask for His insights, we can avoid stress.
- Know our values so we can make sure we’re living them out. If someone asks us to do something that doesn’t line up with our values, it’s okay—even good—to say no.
- Remember our calling. We are called to write. No matter where we are on the journey, if God’s called us to writing, it’s a priority. We must be careful not to plan so many other things on our calendars that we leave no time for writing.
- If we’re already pretty busy, we have no business saying yes to one more thing, unless God makes it very clear He wants us to.
If we are already too busy, it’s important to re-evaluate how we’re spending our time. And it’s okay to begin closing down commitments that don’t align with our callings, our values, or our life situations.
Most of all, we want to lift God up, don’t we? When we are careful with our “yeses”, we will find ourselves less stressed and more attuned to God’s promptings. Let’s give up the urgent for the important.
So tell me, how do you keep from overcommitting your time?
Award-winning, aspiring novelist and blogger Jeanne Takenaka writes contemporary fiction that highlights how faith and grace hold hands in relationships with people and with God. She, her husband, and two boy-men call Colorado home. She loves being a God-seeker, hanging out with friends, and savoring oat milk lattés. When she’s not writing, you can find her, camera in hand, searching for #alittlebitofpretty. She’s a member of ACFW and Novel Academy.