Remember the phrase we teach children, “slow + steady wins the race”? Maybe you heard it as a child. But do you remember the whole story? Do you remember why the tortoise wins?
Task Rabbit Habits
Everyday, most of us live like the hare. We know where we want to go and honestly, we usually know exactly how to get there. But we are:
Distracted by people, places and things
Juggling 101 other tasks
Prioritizing what feels more important
Telling ourselves we can always start tomorrow
Well, it is easy to push it off until tomorrow because there is always a new tomorrow. Or we try to start every single new habit at the same time. I’ve totally been guilty of this, especially on January 1st.
Does this sound like you? 🙋♀️ I know it has been me MANY MANY times. Ask anyone that has spent time working or living with me. I always seem to want to be a Task Rabbit. I am really great at making myself busy. Like R E A L L Y great at it.
In the past, I would meditate (2-5 minutes) and then journal (2 mins max) so that I would have more time to check my not important emails and get totally distracted on Instagram. I would make a quick and easy “healthy” breakfast and then head out the door 5 minutes late. I would be stressed the whole ride to work. I would end up hungry shortly after and usually reach for something less than nutritious. I was trying to do it all at once and guess what? I was failing miserably.
It took me a long time to realize in order to live the simple, balanced and sustainable life I wanted, I was going to have to learn how to live like the tortoise. But how?
Learning the Tortoise Way of Life
Believe me when I say magic happens when we step back, have our eye on the prize and live like the tortoise. I have lived it, more than once!
Have you ever gone on a vacation, truly unplugged and relaxed? Once you finally settled in, have you ever had an AHA moment? A lightbulb thought? Well just 2 months before I left a corporate job in 2019 that was negatively impacting my health + relationships, I was on vacation with Jeff and two of our friends. We had rented a house in Curacao and I had decided I was going to use this trip as a mini reset. Everyday I woke up naturally with the sun, tiptoed to the kitchen, made myself warm lemon water and spent an hour reading and journaling. My phone was off, I didn’t even open Instagram and I read a book in just 2 days. On probably the 3rd day (I was living in the moment and did not record this), floating in the pool with Jeff after breakfast I said out loud “It’s my job. I need to quit my job!” Jeff was like, “yea, I know”. 🤯
I knew I couldn’t quit my job right away and I knew I couldn’t just get the next job I found. I needed to be intentional. So I took it one day at a time and one step at a time. I knew freeing my mind with journaling out my thoughts and reading helped me get here while on vacation My new priority became to slowly establish a solid morning routine.
I wanted to replicate my slow mornings in Curacao. So I started by waking up at the same time every morning. Then after I made that a habit, I added one addition at a time. If it didn’t stick, I thought about why and adjusted. It was slow yet tremendously impactful. Most importantly, it stuck and I continue to have more and more AHA moments.
I left my job in December. I am now a full time marketing consultant and health coach. I help others take a step back, rediscover their why and create SMART goals that guide them to finishing their race and becoming a winner! Remember, everyone, even you can be a winner!
So tell me, are you a task rabbit or do you live with intention like the tortoise?