You need more slack in your life, so you can smile when you hear, "Mom, I have to PEE!"

Are you familiar with the concept of slack? 

Here's what it is:

• It's a king size bed, all to yourself.

• It's an evening after work with no plans.

• It's an early morning cup of coffee while the house is silent.

In short, I think of slack as intentionally-created space. 

It's space that's there in case you need it.

Like when your 4 year old wants to crawl into "the big bed" with you. (Though in this case, it doesn't matter that you have a huge bed with loads of space because in a matter of minutes you'll be desperately clinging to the edge while he's wedged up against you.)

Slack is there when your free evening gets interrupted by an emergency trip to the vet.

It’s there when your peaceful early morning is interrupted by, "Mom, I have to PEE!"

If your typical morning involves sleeping in, then rushing to shower and get dressed before you're bombarded with other people's needs, you'll groan instead of smile when you kid calls out for you in that panicked voice.

When you don't have extra time or space built into your life, these unexpected blips in the routine become annoying disturbances (at best) and hectic emergencies (at worst) quickly. Then you go through your day grumpy, frustrated, and clawing backward at time while you're dragged through the day against your will. 

This is much the same for possessions and your business. When your closet is packed full of all the clothes you've bought in the past 6 years, it's a task not a pleasure to choose your outfit in the morning. 

And when you take on 3 too many clients in your business, you can't serve them in your best way because you're constantly behind and scrambling to do what you were supposed to finish yesterday. That's not fun, and it's the shortest path to burnout. 

The solution? Build slack into every part of your life. 

Schedule fewer social events (even virtual ones), own way fewer possessions than can fit in your home, and take on 50% less than you think you can handle in your business.  

See if you can even manage a smile the next time you hear the word, "pee."