[Image credit: Kittikun Atsawintarangkul]

A reader made a comment on a past post that sometimes you just need to step away.  Lately, I find myself doing it more often than not.  Because in my quest to fill the empty spaces, I tend to overcompensate with too many irons in the fire.  There’s nothing wrong with keeping busy, but to avoid getting burned (out), downtime is important too — the veg-out-in-front-of-the-TV kind or relaxing with the family over pizza and a game of Trivial Pursuit or whatever allows you to fuel up for the next round.  Although I didn’t get my swim in yesterday (it turns out my community pool isn’t heated), I did step back by stocking up on a stack of library books to help me stir up a healthy dose of inspiration.  I’m also reassessing the activities I’m involved with.  Although I’m excited about each and every one of the groups I’ve joined, I need to ensure which ones will best help me accomplish my goals.  It may turn out all of them are a piece to the puzzle, and I simply need to better manage both my busy and down times.  In any case, I don’t want to get burned.

What’s the secret to managing your numerous irons in the fire?