HOW I DO IT ALL

H.I.C.D.A.T is an accroymn for "How I can do all things". That was the name I got for my blog 6 years ago. Yes, I have been writing for 6 years to the glory of God. This is also my 50th blog post . You can read my very first blog post here.

I am a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sibling, a friend, a fitness enthusiast, an investor, a speaker, a writer, a working profesional and a soft life queen....lol to mention a few.

I will be sharing my secret sauce today, so stay tuned. We have all heard the saying "Jack of all trades, master of none" I will challenge that saying becuase you can master it all, that is if you leverage your circle, your community or your tribe.

Women have been told in the past that they have to do it all by themselves in order to be sucessful. No one suceeds in isolation. We all need people around us to achieve our goals and to make our lives easier. Before you roll your eyes at me and say " women are drama" that might be true in some cases but that is where the spirit of discernment comes in. As a child of God once you commit your affairs to the hands of God, He will direct you and show you what path to take. See Proverbs 3:5.

Here are practical steps on how to do it all

1. CHOOSE YOUR ALL: You decide what your "ALL"is. Remember, everthing cannot be important or nothing will be important. You can't be everywhere doing everything, this is the quickest way to burn out. For example, I don't like going out every weekend because I choose to rest. So whatever event I show up to on the weekends, it's becasue I choose to be there. If you going out is what fills your cup by all means do that and prioritize it.

2. ASK FOR HELP: This is coming from a retired "super woman". Asking for help doesn't mean you are weak, the opposite is actually true. Asking for help means you understand your stenghth and know when to reach out if you at capacity or you don't have the bandwith to do something. "What if they say "NO", that was the inner dialogue I used to have with myself as an excuse not to ask for help". There was something my therapist said that really resonated with me " You ask them and let them say "no" you not asking is saying their "no" for them" . It is not our place to say people's "no" for them, ask for help and you will be surprised by the "yes" you will get by just asking .

3. FIND/BUILD A TRIBE: I cannot over emphazie the importance of finding a tribe and in some cases you might have to build one. A tribe is a gruop of people with a common goal. A tribe can be made of family members, a true and trusted friend, a church memeber or someone from your child's play group. You have to be prayerful when finding or building a tribe because you are only a strong as the members of your tribe. You want to make sure these are people you can trust. A personal example will be The Mother's Haven, a group of amazing christian mothers raising neurodivergent kids. The group is a safe space for mothers to share resources,encourage each other in a judgement free space while praying and believing God for our children. You have to contribute to your tribe as they contribute to your life, this is a two-way relationship. If it is only one sided then you are doing it wrong.

4. OUTSOURCE: This one of the secret to a productive life. Just becuase you can do something doesn't mean you have to do it. If it is in your budget outsource household tasks you don't like to do. It doesn't matter who cleans the house as long as it is clean. Outsourcing task will give you time to focus on things that are really important to you. I am an accountant by profession so let me add some numbers in there for clarification. so let's say Mr Z makes $200/hr and it will take him 60minutes to cut his lawn, but he outsoucres this to a landsacping company that will charge him $50. If he hires the landscaping company, he gets an hour of his time back and it will only cost him a quarter of his hourly rate.

5. HAVE YOUR NON-NEGOTIABLES: Non-negotiables are any deeply held beliefs that are so important to you that you will not compromise them. I am a fitness enthusiast and my workout times are non-negotiable, I prioritize and make make sure nothing hinders me from going to the gym. Another non-negotiable are my Sundays. Sunday is the day that I set up for the week, I meal plan and prep, orgainize and sync my calendars. If I accept a party invite for a Sunday, the person must be very special to me becuase Sundays are for Jesus and setting up for the week.

6. ASK FOR DAILY STRENGTH FROM GOD :This is the most important part, Jesus cares about us and wants us to invite Him into every area of our lives. As women, we do a lot of things for a lot of people so we need strength to do all we do. If you need strenght, ask God; He will Strengthen you.

So, how do I do it all? The short answer is: I do it all, but not all by myself .

Question of the day: Do you believe in asking for help? Why?

Until next time, remember, you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you.