Choosing "Both/And" Instead of "Either/Or"

By Jenna D'Annunzio

As a full-time coach and mother of three, multitasking is a way of life. I will not pretend to be the first mother to wear a gazillion hats; the first mom who has tiny, perfect wildlings running around while attempting to upkeep a home, AND run/build/maintain a successful business. Woof, I got tired just writing that!

Meditating and mommying

All too often, I find myself coaching my clients through what it looks like to live into what I call the “both/and-” the fancy concept that has literally kept me afloat for the past 7 years. Rather than prioritizing one thing over another, one can actively choose to take a 30,000-foot view and come up with ways to incorporate both. This way, you walk away feeling productive, balanced and at ease. Can you imagine?! 

Both/And is the principle that invites you into a space of possibility where you no longer feel the pressure of having to choose one priority over another; shifting from, “Either I do this, or I do that,” to a solution-focused mindset that uncovers ways to engage in both experiences. 

Both/And opens the door to a world of peace, harmony, and balance. It is an opportunity to feel grounded in your path to being the best version of yourself through identifying the areas of your life that are important and uncovering solutions to ensure all are cared for. Both/And synergizes your life, in contrast to “either/or” thinking where you constantly feel torn between two or more experiences and thus feel out of balance. 

But why don’t do we do this naturally? Why do we subconsciously gravitate to thinking either we study or we work; either we work out or we do the laundry; eye-of-the-tiger on our diet or we eat the deliciously cheesy and greasy pizza? 

First, change is scary and hard to deal with at first. We as human beings sometimes like to pretend that we like change. But in reality, it takes us out of our comfort zone into the world of the unknown and pulls our sense of security out from under us! Believe it or not, we would rather adapt to the easy familiar rather than risking the unknown, that way we stay “safe.”

So here’s my homework for you all…what’s an area of your life in which you can practice a one-degree shift incorporating the Both/And principle? 

Ok. You got this! 

Here for you 😉,

Coach Jenna