When you feel you’re not doing enough, or that you’re not enough, you work much harder than you need to. You take on work that isn’t even your responsibility. And because you can never do enough, that ending place where you get to rest on your laurels is an illusion. It doesn’t exist.

The Law of Magnetic Attraction says, “You get what you focus on.” Another way to say it is, “You attract more of what you pay attention to.” If you’re moving through life with an unsettled feeling in the pit of your stomach because you never get to the bottom of your bottomless “to do” list, where is your attention? The negative feeling that comes when you’re focused on everything you haven’t done is an Emotional Messenger sent by your Inner Guide, telling you, “If you stay focused here, you’re not going to like what you get!”

As a coach, a large part of my job is to support my clients in paying attention to their Emotional Messengers. Can I be blunt here? If it doesn’t feel good, you are on the wrong track!!!

If you’re like me, your “to do” list is enough to keep a small army busy. I used to think this was a bad thing. Of course, that was when I thought that the point of the game was to cross everything off my list. Once I was done, THEN I could _____________ (fill in the blank).

What happens when everything on your to do list is done? You are correct! YOU’RE done. Call the undertaker, there’s no need for you anymore.

Now I understand that the game is to put things ON my “to do” list. The more I put there, the longer I get to live. By my calculations, there are already enough things on there to last me until age 80 and I add more every day.

It’s not just about living a long life, it’s about life force. All those things on your list are excuses to summon the energy that IS life. The reason we fade as we get older isn’t due to old age, it’s due to not having enough things on our list. Don’t you know some elderly people who are amazingly busy? Are they feeble? NO! They’ve got too much to do to be feeble!

I used to tell my daughters, when they were teenagers, “I can’t wait until you’re 40 and have some energy!” (They didn’t have enough on their lists.)

I am not advocating that you do more. I am advocating that you understand that the list is always going to be there, and that’s good! Quit acting like it’s your enemy. It’s your life!

Hold on! Read the above again out loud, slowly, and with feeling. Repeat as necessary.

Getting to enough is about enjoying the journey. It is knowing that your list is always going to be there and only a few priorities must be done today.

Getting to enough is about giving up being a martyr. Look at your list and ask yourself the following question, “How many of the things on this list are NONE OF MY BUSINESS?” Have you put things on your list that you’re doing for other people? Did they ask you to do them? Give those things back to their rightful owner – quit robbing them of energy by taking stuff off of THEIR list and putting it on yours!

Define for yourself every day what enough is so that when you get there, you can stop!