Week 23

Decision fatigue. If those two words resonate with you - I feel ya. As an entrepreneur, I am in control of every thing I do in my work and in my day. I am my own boss, my own manager, my own everything. Especially as a single person. I don’t have a family or children determining my schedule for the day.

This is a huge blessing. I have so much freedom and flexibility that many people would do anything for. However, like all things, there is a shadow side of it too. This kind of life requires a lot of discipline to maintain. If I’m having an off day, I don’t just show up to work and get paid anyway. My paychecks are a direct result of the effort that I put in (well, maybe - the life of a freelancer can be unpredictable, haha).

It’s easy to allow this perspective to build into immense self-imposed pressure. I’m often tempted towards self criticism if I wake up feeling tired and less productive than I want to be. I ride a line between “Jordyn, it’s okay to have a slower morning - that’s the gift of entrepreneurship and creating your own schedule” and “Jordyn, stay disciplined, push through the tiredness, stay consistent and hold yourself accountable to your goals”. This is where decision fatigue really starts to grow. Do I choose rest or work in this moment? What is better for me? Do I do the laundry instead for a mind break/creative reset or is that procrastination?

…Do you see the oncoming spiral of overthinking? That pattern is so not peaceful. These aren’t thoughts I have every day, but thoughts like these do happen. I am sharing them because I’m sure some of you might relate.

So what do I do about it? I am more and more convinced that decisions become easier to make well when priorities and values are established. When I find myself in these patterns of thinking, I come back to what is really important to me. What kind of person do I want to be? How can I serve those around me best?

I encourage you to quiet all the advice around you for a moment. Ask yourself: what do you really want to do with your time? What will “end of the day ‘you’” be most proud of how you chose to spend your time? Try to ask yourself these questions with grace. You can’t do it all. That’s okay. That’s called being a human. We all have limitations.

I just want to encourage you today. Peace is available in your day today. Those overwhelming pressures, decisions, choices don’t have to ruin another beautiful day. Just take it one step at a time. Slow down. Enjoy this exact moment. Life is a gift. Whether you’re an entrepreneur like me, or working a day job…we all have time for what we prioritize. Find what’s important to you and focus on that. Who knows, maybe that’s creativity for you. If so, go have fun! Make something! Enjoy the beauty of the process :).

Thanks for reading! I hope you have a wonderful day!

The simple YouTube video I made this week :)

This week’s creative challenge:

FOR THOSE WHO MAKE IT TO THE BOTTOM OF MY EMAILS :)

Hey, for those faithful readers of my newsletter… I just want to say thank you. I can’t believe I’ve been at this for 23 weeks. I’m sure there are some weeks that write something that totally doesn’t apply to you…and yet, I’m sure some of you still read every word. That seriously means a lot. I’m just another creator like you trying to do my best here. I appreciate your support of me through everything. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

As always, if you want to share some of your creative work with me - I would love to see it! Don’t be shy :)

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Have a great day!

Best, Jordyn

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