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This is the question that I most often get from students in the college level nutrition course where I teach at a local university. The question always stops me in my tracks for a minute but I try to put myself in their shoes. They see me, their enthusiastic instructor who has a family, runs marathons and runs her own private practice. I remember rushing through dinner and leaving the table before the rest of my family. I remember trying to play catch up while listening to my favorite podcast on the way to campus or calling a friend I haven’t talked to in weeks on my drive home. I remember leaving the classroom with a sense of accomplishment and arriving home after my sons are in bed. The main thing that this interaction reminds me is that no one can do it all. Let me repeat that for you again….
No one can do it all.
No one. Not you, me or anyone else that you meet in your life. We all have 24 hours in the day and should [key word there] spend at least 8 hours each day sleeping. If you factor in working hours, commuting, errands, house hold chores, movement, cooking, eating and cleaning. It doesn’t leave a lot of time for much else. I used to think that I needed to do things myself in order for them to be done correctly. I was wrong. In fact, when you have someone else complete a task for you it can be done more efficiently than if you had done it for yourself. I had to admit to myself that we cannot be good at everything. For me, this meant considering each task that I completed each day and ask,
“Am I the best person to complete this task?"
I practiced this thought process when I launched Restore Ease Dietetics, LLC. This is what I focused my time on while on winter break from teaching at the university. I carved time for my practice when my children were sleeping, when my youngest was napping and honestly, when I should have been sleeping. Almost a month after launching Restore Ease Dietetics, I joined Dietitian Business School to help me focus my energy on certain aspects of my business. While learning from Jennifer McGurk and other incredible private practice dietitians, I became more confident in asking others to complete tasks for my business. I had the opportunity to talk about how important support was in growing my business in the latest episode of the Pursuing Private Practice podcast. No spoiler alerts here on which individuals make up my support team as I would love for you to listen the podcast for yourself.
This blog is the first installment of the Support Series. Next week, we will cover building a support system as an athlete and finish with a support system for those with mental health concerns including eating disorders and disordered eating.