If you ask my Mum what life was like with me as a teenager, one of the things she’ll likely mention was her critical role as the ‘No Police’ as she liked to call it. She spent a fair bit of time helping me to say ‘no’ to the plethora of opportunities I managed to drum up for myself… and mopping up the proverbial mess when I still managed to overcommit when she wasn’t looking.
I don’t think I’m alone in the fact that I’m more than minorly addicted to overcommitting myself and biting off more than I can chew.
And occasionally it all comes to a head and it’s time to prioritize.
Indeed, another thing my Mum often said was this: “You’re never ‘too busy’ for anything. You just haven’t made it a priority.” We do have a finite amount of time in the day to complete a finite number of tasks, that is true. However, we have a choice what we prioritize and if we don’t get to something for that reason, then it’s obviously not important enough (or it is, and we’re struggling to get our priorities straight).
So I’m just going to put it out there, with greatest respect to all of you and to the University of London Student Blog: I haven’t made a priority of writing for this blog. Over summer break I cut out completely. Since then I’ve managed one post. And when this month’s self-imposed deadline for writing rolled around, I just felt overwhelmed at the thought. I’m sorry.
I’ve also just had a baby, in case you missed the memo! And while I am starting to emerge from that postpartum blur (hurrah!), it has also become clear that it’s time to get really, really brutal with my priorities. The studies are lagging despite all the tips I suggested in my last post. I need more sleep. Christmas is coming… including five weeks of travel home to family. It’s time to slice and dice, slash and burn, and trim those commitments down to a minimum.
So, unfortunately, that means it’s time to say farewell to you all. Thanks for your understanding. I hope that at some point my posts have been helpful, insightful, encouraging and/or entertaining… and if not, well, good riddance, eh?! If, on the off chance you have enjoyed what I wrote, feel free to follow my blog, Craic & Banter. That’s where I’ll be keeping up my literary efforts, pared back as they may be.
All the best to everyone for the 2014/15 academic year! I’m off back to my books and my baby!
Cheers,
Lucy
Lucy is studying the MSc Public Health by distance learning in Bangkok, Thailand. She is originally from New Zealand.
