Do you struggle with saying no?
For Ana, overcoming dyslexia at a young age, and conquering a Master's Degree in a foreign language was just the beginning.
She remembers thinking of herself as the energizer bunny, to keep going and going to outlast everyone else.
She said yes over and over again, until she couldn’t anymore.
Then she was diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer. It was a wake up call that made her get clear on her priorities and shift from 'pile-it-all-on' to being selective with her time.
Key Takeaways
Key Moments
{05:25} “And I kept working during my cancer treatments. I kept working because that was one of the parts in my life that I could keep some normality going, and I felt a human still. But I had to learn to work smarter and not harder. That was the wake up call. At that level, I could not push because I was pushing myself to go through the treatments enough and with the little energy that I had left.”
{07:07} “I say, ‘no, no. I cannot do that.’ That was something that I was not used to doing. I was used to taking advantage of any opportunity that showed up. And what I realized is that if I kept focus on the things that I chose, I could still make an impact.”
{09:31} “I felt ‘okay they have my back.’ I had their back for so long, they had my back now. That felt really good to have the support. They really stepped into the occasion and that was a rewarding thing to see that people were there for me.”
{20:38} “I could enjoy life more and I could have more time and energy to enjoy my family, to travel, to exercise. And even now I manage to read one book per week because I develop habits that are in the service of a life that I want to live.”
More about Ana
Ana Melikian, Ph.D., is the host of the Mindset Zone podcast listed alongside "On Being" and "TED Radio Hour" by The Huffington Post's "15 Podcasts That Will Leave You Pondering Life's Big Questions." Ana combines extensive research, life experiences, and two decades of work in human potential to help others cultivate mental wellness while increasing their effectiveness and strengthening relationships. She has a captivating presentation style and a gift for making complex concepts easy to understand.
Get in touch with Ana
https://anamelikian.com/
Share your Story
Send it to us at podcast@jennylynnerickson.com
Get Beyond Workaholism
If you’re wondering what you need right now and how to manage your time, take the space test and see for yourself.
