Doing less and keeping it light
On stepping away from hustle culture, and learning to work with what is in front of you
A deplorable state I find myself in sometimes: exhausted, tuning out via social media and simultaneously tuning in to my growing sense that I have not done enough with my day.
And perhaps there’s something else I need to do? And wouldn’t my life be much, much better if I could only muster the energy to do that thing? Oh but I can’t because I’m soooo exhausted.
You see how it goes 🫠
Lately I’ve been challenging the voice that asks these questions, by asking some different questions of my own. Initially, it was a slightly desperate experiment, but, bit by bit this new dialog is creating a sense of ease and calm in my being that I’ve never experienced before. It hasn’t always meant doing less. Sometimes, it has meant doing more—because it mattered to do more.
This week, I’m sharing those questions.
Big love and keep going,
Lucy
Have you done enough?
MEMO - What paths might close?
If you’re dealing with a nagging sense you could have done more with your day, ask yourself: What paths might close if I do nothing else before tomorrow. Very often, the answer will be “no paths will close”. Occasionally, you’ll discover you are throwing yourself under a bus by not pushing harder. I find this question to be an incisive way to clarify.
MEMO - What paths might open?
This question is not an inversion of the question above. It’s about doing less and being intentional about making that “doing less” count. The question is: what one thing that I can do right now has an outsized chance of creating possibility or positive connection in my life? Often these things are relational—about reaching out to someone, or asking for something. Almost as often, they’re administrative or logistical: a single task that creates a dam or block until completed.
MEMO - What might clear the way on your current path?
Per the subject of this newsletter, a lot of this is about doing less, about taking a load off. Sometimes, however, there are ways we can be kind to our tomorrow selves by pushing 10% harder today. So, the final question I ask is: what can I do today that will make things easier for myself tomorrow? The sorts of answers returned to me are usually small, mundane tasks that take little from me when all is said and done. And, I am always happy for the lighter burden the next day.
Let me know: What are some ways you keep hustle culture at bay?