Recently I had a talk with a young brain cancer survivor I have mentored and encouraged for years. He shared he was struggling and having a hard time staying focused. Since both of our disabilities are related to our brains, we have similar side effects and limitations.
- Mobility issues
- Partial paralysis
- Depression
Since we follow each other on Facebook, I can see his posts about staying up late playing video games or watching sports. I jokingly reminded him, welcome to Adulting 101, prioritize work over entertainment.
Like many of us, he has adult responsibilities that require him to get rest and stay alert. It’s great to have fun, but we cannot be careless with our time or forget our priorities. As adults, if any of us fail to get adequate rest and nutrition, our performance in other areas will be affected.
This is especially important for people with disabilities, no one needs to bite off more than they can handle or they will suffer the consequences and find themselves at the BOTM.
BOTM
I am using the acronym BOTM for how we feel when we Bite Off Too Much in life and unintentionally overwhelm ourselves. When we were younger, we experienced the feeling of having a hangover the day after staying up late partying and drinking. The actions of the night before negatively affect our focus and performance the day after.
Based on my experience as a brain injury survivor, I cannot overemphasize the importance of rest and not overstretching ourselves, whether you have a disability or not. Although stress can cause anyone to have a health crisis like a stroke or heart attack, the risk is amplified for persons with brain-related impairments.
It is crucial for people with disabilities to accept their limitations and not take on too much work or exhaustive situations that can cause more harm than good. Implementing cognitive pacing is a great way to help reduce anyone’s stress levels.
Again, this isn’t exclusive to persons with disabilities, anyone can bite off too much than they can handle. We all have 24 hours in a day and seven days in a week, there is only so much we can take on without throwing our life out of kilter.
As much as I hate the cliché, “Balance your life,” I understand its principle. We shouldn’t overbook ourselves in any area of our life; don’t let your work life overtake your family or social life, etc.
The same principle applies in reverse; don’t let your social life become more important than your vocation. This balancing act can be beneficial for writers also.
The Writing Life
A writer’s life needs balance as well. It is easy to get caught up in the momentum of writing and put too much on our plate. That has happened to me this year.
While at church recently I heard a children’s sermon that gave me an idea to the person giving the children’s sermon for an article. I began by praying about it.
I approached the individual who is a friend of mine to see if he would be interested in sharing some of his spiritual and coaching insights with me in an article. He was as excited about the article as I was.
The next week I pitched the article to a publisher who welcomed the interview/article. While everything seemed to be falling into place, I didn’t see the hiccup coming.
My friend was preparing to go out of town for a training session and I needed to get the interview done as quickly as possible. Seems like a simple obstacle to overcome, but I neglected to take into account my other writing obligations. Not only did the interview put me in a bind with other deadlines, it also meant I’d have to sacrifice personal outings I was hoping to enjoy. Nothing stresses a writer out like managing time to ensure meeting a deadline.
As writers we are constantly thinking about what our next article, blog post or book. We value our downtime and preparation time. However, it is easy to take on too much work when you enjoy it and get excited about a project.
Writers need to manage their schedules and workloads wisely. Effectively managing our time can help keep us from overbooking our schedules and becoming overwhelmed by our writing projects. Below are some tips to help writers better manage their time:
- Avoid distractions
- Set clear goals
- Prioritize tough tasks
- Don’t strive for perfection
- Write in short spurts
Many of us need to learn how to say “no” to work that may take too much of our time and energy. Always prioritize what projects you work on.
Learn to balance your writing time with your downtime to help minimize your stress levels and improve the quality of your writing.
Even with good time management, there are times when every writer needs to admit their limitations. It takes humility to admit we have limitations.
Humble Yourself
After I had my accident, I was full steam ahead to get back to my life. The problem is I was living in the past, unaware of my new reality of living with a disability. I have shared the story of how I fell off of the toilet because I was in a rush to be independent.
But I didn’t learn my lesson about the extent of my brain injury and the limitations it brought. The next lesson came once I was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital. One morning, I was pushed into a dining room for breakfast.
I was surrounded by other stroke survivors who looked a lot worse than I did. A few minutes after I began eating my cereal, I felt a slight sensation in my lap. When I looked down I saw milk and cereal on my clothes.
Unbeknownst to me, the left side of my mouth was drooping and milk and food were falling out onto my clothes. I have not eaten cereal since that day almost 30 years ago. That humbling incident woke me up to my new reality:
- Partially paralyzed
- Impatient
- Limited eyesight
If you have gone to an all-you-can-eat buffet, you understand how easy it is to put more food on your plate, than your stomach can handle. Sure, our eyes enjoy what they see, but our bodies can only handle so much.
Likewise, writers think they can handle more work in their schedule because they are professionals, overbooking our schedules leads to less quality work and often feeling overwhelmed, this is why is important not to bite off too much!
Martin Johnson survived a severe car accident with a (T.B.I.) Traumatic brain injury which left him legally blind and partially paralyzed on the left side. He is an award-winning Christian screenwriter who has recently finished his first Christian nonfiction book. Martin has spent the last nine years volunteering as an ambassador and promoter for Promise Keepers ministries. While speaking to local men’s ministries he shares his testimony. He explains The Jesus Paradigm and how following Jesus changes what matters most in our lives. Martin lives in a Georgia and connects with readers at MartinThomasJohnson.com and on Twitter at mtjohnson51.
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