Hi Reader,

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For anyone feeling a little (or a lot) of stress, one of the first questions you can ask yourself is whether you're taking on more responsibility than you need to.

I started a new job a couple of months ago, working with my husband Marc at our family staffing and recruiting agency.

A few weeks in, a senior member of our team left to take another job. While I had been training as a recruiter, my role suddenly shifted to employee onboarding, payroll, and benefits administration.

(If I lost you in that jargon, I basically started a new job all over again.)

My first week doing payroll solo, I had a panic moment after a day full of blunders and delays. It was just Marc and I in the office that day, and I broke down crying, afraid that some disaster was imminent if I screwed up.

Marc assured me that we would figure it out, and that ultimately running the business is his responsibility. If I was in a position that was too difficult, it was his job to figure out a different way to get the work done, even if that meant moving me to an alternative role.

I felt like a ton of weight was released that day. He's been in the industry for 14 years and I've been in it for less than three months. Yet somehow I felt his burdens were also mine.

I had my job to do--and I was still learning it. We made some adjustments so I didn't feel as much pressure. A few weeks down the road, I'm getting a pretty good handle on it. As I gain more experience, I'll gain more responsibility.

Since then, I've been reminded of my tendency to take on more ownership than necessary in other areas of my life. What other people are feeling, what decisions they're making, health outcomes, financial outcomes...they hijack too much of my precious mind space.

Again and again, it's like God says, "That's not your job." And so I release the burdens that aren't mine and stay in my lane, taking one step at a time as faithfully as I can.

This is a lesson I seem never to stop learning. Maybe it's my personality and experiences, or does everyone struggle as hard as I do?

Some reflection/prayer points for those who relate...

• What is something in your life causing you stress at the moment?
• Are you taking on more responsibility than is yours?
• What is your job, and what is not your job?
• Release what is not your job through prayer (see Philippians 4:6-7)

You might also like this article: How I Manage Anxiety with 5 Calming Steps​

Ready to take it to the next level? Check out my eCourses Chaos to Calm and Choose Rest.

Live well,

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