Episode Details

Welcome back to the unSeminary podcast. Today we’re talking with Carey Nieuwhof, a leadership expert, author, speaker, podcaster, former attorney, and church planter. He’s with us today to share about how to address the crisis of overwhelm in our work and lives.

• Digital scales in a way that physical doesn’t. // After the pandemic, we understand this truth at a whole other level. Digital avenues build momentum which keeps growing and growing. One example is Carey’s podcast, which has enabled him to use his time to help even more people. By contrast there’s no way he could travel to speaking engagements and reach all of those same people at a sustainable level. Moving more to digital has increased reach while reducing overwork, overwhelm and burnout.
• Control and scale are opposites. // You can’t have total control and also grow things, so you have to learn to trust your team more. Recognize what you do well, hire great people to do the rest, and trust them to do their jobs. Give them room to do their part without you trying to control it. Growth happens when there is more freedom.
• Find what moves you. // Carey spends an hour in the mornings reading scripture, praying, and reflecting to discern what his next step is and what really moves the needle on any given day. To help you find the things that you need to focus on, think of it like a Venn diagram with concentric circles for gifting, passion and impact. What are you truly gifted at? What energizes you? What produces the greatest results in your life? As you examine your jobs, experiences, and things you’ve been drawn to throughout your life, there is a center line that you’re going to keep coming back to again and again. That’s probably a clue to how God wired you and what is going to help your organization win. Then spend 80% of your time doing the 20% that really moves the needle.
• Overwhelmed, overcommitted, overworked. // The challenge for us is that there are so many opportunities in life that we can pursue or shiny objects that we can chase. This is why gaining clarity about our gifting and calling is key. Ask what you are really good at, learn how to say no, and learn how to keep other people from hijacking your time.
• Time is a fixed commodity. // Your value to the organization is not synonymous with how many hours you work. Learn how to focus your time because you can’t spend it on everything. Figure out how to leverage your energy and how to avoid having your priorities highjacked. When it comes to time management, you are managing a fixed commodity, so there is only so much you can do with that time you have. Take an honest look at yourself and pay attention to your energy levels during the day. Then do what you’re best at when you’re at your best. That is where the exponential returns begin.
• The crisis of overwhelm. // Carey has a new book soon to be released, At Your Best: How to Get Time, Energy, and Priorities Working in Your Favor. Overwhelm is the crisis of our age, and through this book Carey tries to help us live in a way today that will help us thrive tomorrow. At Your Best will help you replace chronic exhaustion with deep productivity, clarify what matters most by restructuring your day, discover why vacations and sabbaticals don’t really solve your problems, develop a personalized plan to recapture each day so you can break free from the trap of endless to-dos, and more.
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