Something's Gotta Give

That quote pretty much perfectly explains how I have been feeling lately. I have sort of felt stretched to my limits. When I shared my resolutions for 2011, I mentioned passing the CFA which is this massive 6-hour finance exam that I will take in early June. 35-40% of the people who take it pass, by the way. So the odds are not so great! So that test was already stressing me out.

Then a couple of weeks ago I found out that I need to pass 2 licensing exams before I can really be effective in my job (the series 7 and 63). My boss thought these could wait until after the CFA, but I can't meet with clients or write any articles until I have passed these tests, so we moved them up to April. These 2 licensing exams are not bad, but coupled with the CFA - and it's a lot.

So now I am juggling work + studying for multiple exams + training for my 10 mile run + attempting to be a good daughter/sister/aunt/friend/etc. Truth be told, I have been feeling a little overwhelmed. I have actually started to dream about things like options and financial market regulations. No joke. In the grand scheme of things, I know the stress I am dealing with is a walk in the park compared to what others are going through (like dealing with the aftermath of an earthquake and the potential for a nuclear disaster), but it's a lot for me. So I had to make some small adjustments to make things just a little bit easier and life a little bit happier:

• Housekeeping. As I mentioned on Tuesday, I hired a cleaning service. I feel a bit sheepish about this because I am single and childless. I should be able to find time to clean, right? Well, I am gone at least 13 hours a day, and then I come home and study. And then I spend the majority of the weekend studying. So I finally accepted the fact that I just don't have time right now to clean my own condo. My mom told me not to feel guilty about this and she is the ultimate "do it all" mom. Hearing her tell me this was a good decision makes me feel a lot better. The service comes every other week. Walking into a spotless condo = priceless. I realize that this is a luxury and not something that is economically feasible for everyone. So I get that I am lucky that I can afford this. That said, I don't eat out often. I don't buy beverages from places like Starbucks. I don't spend very much money on clothes. I've decided to continue to drive my paid off car v. buying a new car. So I make choices in other areas of my life so that hiring a cleaning service is feasible.
• TV. The list of unwatched recorded shows in my DVR was starting to stress me out... Who gets stressed by their freaking DVR? So I cut the number of shows I watch down to 3: How I Met Your Mother, Top Chef, and Parenthood.
• Changing race plans. I had planned on doing the Fargo 1/2 marathon in May. I was so excited about this race as I have so much family in Fargo so I knew I'd know some spectators on the course! Well, the race is a couple of weeks before the exam and I decided that it is just not wise to go out of town a couple of weeks before the exam. So I have decided not to do that race. I am bummed, but I will just have to find a race in August. Then I will have the time to dedicate to training and can enjoy my training runs.
• Blogging a little less. My blog posts will be a bit less frequent and I might not get a chance to comment on as many posts.

The good news is that these exams will be behind me after June 4th - and regaining all that time spent studying will make a world of a difference. I am thankful for the fact that I will be able to enjoy my summer and won't be chained to my study materials!

What adjustments do you make when you find yourself getting stressed out?