2 Things That Can't Co-Exist In My Life

I wasn’t always aware of these two polar opposites, but over the years, I realized that there are two specific elements in my life that absolutely cannot coexist.

Clutter and Focus.

And I never realize that the two are in an epic battle until clutter eventually wins. It’s crazy. I’ll walk in my office one day and I can’t physically see my desk.

That’s when I need to go ahead and hit that pause button.

I’m sure that you have a different ergonomic process, but for me, if clutter exists, then focus doesn’t.

Here are a couple things that lead to clutter in my life:

1. Taking on too many projects.
This is probably the worst for me. In order to keep my email clean, I’ll print out the email as a representation of a project that I need to engage. Eventually, I realize that I have so many projects lined up that I start mindlessly deleting things. While the delete button is my friend, excessive use can hurt me in the long run.

2. Not finishing the projects that I started.
These are even projects that I’m the vision-holder of! I have a “starter” gift. Unfortunately, I don’t have the “finisher” gift. That’s not an excuse, though. Anyone can start something. The real winners finish what they start (if it’s worth it).

3. Giving too much (or any) time/energy/resources to projects that don’t match up with my vision.
This has more to do with getting involved in the community than anything. Events need promotion. Videos need edited. Teams need donations. All those are good things. However, when they get in the way of your leadership over your organization, they become obstacles to manage. Be careful how many you take on. And don’t be afraid to say no! They don’t have to answer to God for what you do in this life!

4. Not taking time out to think (this actually deserves to be number one).
The Strengths Finder tells me that I need to spend a solid amount of time each week in my own head. I believe the “theme of talent” this relates to is “intellection.” This test showed me that my work, relationship, and life in general will be healthiest when I spend plenty of time thinking. By the way, if you haven’t taken the Strengths Finder, do it. Immediately! It will change everything about your leadership/work life!

5. Not getting enough rest.
When life gets busy, the first thing to go is rest. My thought is, “I can shave off a couple hours of sleep to finish this project and just make sure to grab coffee in the morning.” That’s fine until it turns into a week-long habit. At that point, you can’t recover.

6. Poor time management.
In student ministry, I have enough work to do to fill my week with office work. But I’m a pastor. And one of my gifts/strengths/skills is to spend time with my students to love on them. If I go office-heavy, my students get cheated. If I go meeting-heavy, the work gets cheated. And that’s not even taking into account family time. Good time management is key.

7. Not delegating well.
Ugh. I suck at this. There’s no other way to put it. I have an awesome team ready to take on the next responsibility. But when I run at an unhealthy pace, I tend to blow past them in an effort to get the next project done. This is simply a symptom that I’m not thinking through my processes and projects.

8. Not maintaining a “stop doing” list.
Jim Collins taught me this. A stop-doing list is as important as a to-do list. Do you spend equal energy on both?

What did I miss? Are there any symptoms in your life that I didn’t include in this list?