Being a wife, mom, event planner, and friend, I tend to wear many hats. I’m a lot to a lot of people,and  I thrive off connection and helping people when I am able. However, there are many times in which I cannot help or be a part of certain initiatives because of other conflicts that may occur in my life. Many times, I tend to say “yes” to everything and life can quickly become overwhelming. That’s why when I saw Tiffany Dufu’s book called Drop the Ball: Achieving More for Doing Less, I was instantly drawn in based on title alone. In that moment, I knew I had so many balls to drop and wanted to know more.

After gazing at the title, and reading the book sleeve, I immediately recalled all of the items on my to-do lists that I wished I could drop that very minute in seeing her book.  I definitely had a few balls to drop, yet didn’t quite know how. My fear of dropping the balls in my life primarily was drawn from the anxiety of things being done right. As an event planner, I can be type ‘A’, a person who needs to have control of it all. Being raised in this industry, I’ve always been a person that saw things through, and pick up balls that other people drop.

Dropping the Ball Can Mean Helping Yourself

Drop the Ball makes you realize that people are truly capable of helping you if you are able to allow them to take full responsibility of task. As Tiffany Dufu shared her story, I realized that she depended on the people in her life to take responsibility for the things that she entrusted to them. Once Tiffany delegated responsibility, the new owner took on the task fully using whatever methods they saw fit. For me, this hit so close to home. Many times we want things to be done our way, not realizing that everyone is unique and brings different qualities and insights to the table. Suppressing their true expression of completing a task, can also be holding you back from understanding a better way.

It’s Okay to Get Help

Event planners are very creative, personable people. We thrive on the control we have when ensuring an event comes together according to our set plan. What we fail to realize is that when we become overwhelmed with plans, or reach a stumbling block in our creativity, bringing in others and allowing them to help could be the best route to success. We shouldn’t think that by submitting to the help of others, that it makes us look below par as a planner. We should be excited for the new ways and different perspectives that others bring our events.

Event planners should create go-to list of people that are willing to carry the ball, essentially a team that is able and willing to help in any way possible. When we need help, we should make our needs known so that we can find the support we need. Planners should trust fully who they put in control. When this happens we will find that help comes from the most surprising sources, and tasks are fulfilled in amazing ways.

Summary

There comes a point in time that we realize that we are unable to do it all. Doing it all can feel impossible. Studies show that multitasking can reduce productivity by 40%. So it is almost worth it to drop the ball and delegate to someone else so that you can remain more productive with your priorities. Having the right team in place at work and at home, can help us accomplish far more than we set out to do. I encourage you to read Drop the Ball: Achieving More for Doing Less, as it can help you gain insight into what you can do to lighten your load at work and at home.

Have you dropped the ball at home or work? How did it work for you?

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Photo by Daniel Alvarez Sanchez Diaz on Unsplash

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