For years I’ve said, “Women don’t have the luxury of doing one thing at a time.” And isn’t that the truth?
I mean, when was the last time you just folded the laundry or just went to work or just drove the children to practice? If you are like many women, I would guess that that has never happened–ever.
Our days are busy with multi-tasking ad infinitum. We shedule appointments over the phone while we’re driving our children to practice. We answer 20 questions, resolve disputes and let the dog out while folding the laundry. We even take phone calls from the school nurse, read the email from the teacher and make sure our children got home from school all while we’re at work.
We’re not super women. We’re just women. And as I’ve heard some women say, we could go to work, take care of the children and the home, and fulfill all our necessary responsibilities, all with one hand tied behind our backs.
While that’s a bit of an exaggeration, I’m sure there are some of us who really do think that. I used to.
When I would go away to do a conference or a workshop somewhere, I would have to train my mind to NOT think of what was going on at home. Or, more like it, what WASN”T going on at home. If I did, it was sure to put a damper on my weekend.
And when I walked in the door after my event and put my bags down, I would say hello and look around to what looked like the aftermath of an E5 tornado. I would say, “Honey, what did you do all weekend?” to which he would reply with all seriousness, “I watched the kids!”
And while I was less than happy at the moment, there was a lot of “right-ness” in what he said. He DID watch the kids. And he had a great time doing it! They played games, went to Chuck E. Cheese, made popcorn and watched movies together. He was present with them, physically and mentally.
His thoughts were not on what’s for dinner (he though about that 5 minutes before dinner time) or what the day’s schedule was like. He was watching the children. He was all there. Every ounce of his being was invested in watching the children and he was great it. And while he watched them, he didn’t bother himself with other things.
Ladies, while we may think it is better to do many things at once, I believe we are missing a valuable lesson we can learn here:
To do one thing at a time. And to do it well. To not overload our minds and our thoughts and our hours with many things, but to really focus on that which is important and stick with it. To be all there, all the time.
Imagine the impact we could have if we tried this one simple thing…