While this familiar sentiment is usually a soothing accompaniment at eulogies it is with increased sadness that we find ourselves in an age of staycations, working lunches and laptop cruises or island destinations. Whatever happened to the actuating of the mind in accepting a true blue vacation. Scheduling personal time for yourself amid a demanding work load whether starting your own business or keeping the existing business thriving takes a tender balancing act. Many have normalized a routine revolving around work and errands. Tending to backseat their own needs out of momentary necessity.
Maybe the kids forgot the cupcakes you iced two seconds before they hopped onto the school pavement and you, needing to make it to the bank, market and post office in 15 minutes before your next deadline. Now you must decide whether trailing back to the school is worth losing the five minute coffee break you slaved for by getting everyone out the door on time. You grind it over in your mind knowing all along that the precious looks of your children's grief stricken expressions changed to elation as you, the super parent have done it again! Saving the day by making the second trip to deliver the forgotten sweets to your awaiting young charges. You feel awesome, right?
That may be great and all but the fact remains that you tend to be in crisis mode more often than not. You break less, unless you break down and at those intervals of crazy panic you only allow yourself the time to regroup not actually rest.
Try these simple steps to sublime renewal:
Check the next day's calendar of events to see where possible you can rearrange simple tasks. Either assign these to others or reprioritize-
Let your yes be yes and your no, no. Once business decisions have been made stop second guessing which can cause unnecessary work load increase. Stand by your choices as they should have been researched and well-thought out beforehand. There is nothing worse than micro-managing the simplest of tasks. So don't do it-
Calm down on the sugar intake. Sugary sweets, cereals, the extra shots in your morning coffee can heighten your mood significantly. You may be awake but are you more affective or just wired? Making wiser choices from the outset of your day starts with what you put into your body, so go easy on the sugar-
When the day is done, it is done. Notice what time you stop working as opposed to when you really stop the working process for that day. If it exceeds 30 minutes, re-strategize to see how to accomplish more within the allotted time in your normal work day. Do not keep adding time to the schedule.
Know how much you can really do within your waking hours. Create a grid either on a message board at home for all to see or build one online that you and your staff, family or others who are affected by it, can, at a quick glance detect challenges early. Now positive changes can be made without turning your eight to nine hour day into a fourteen hour distress call nightmare-
Have a back up plan. Are you and your staff on the same page when it comes to backing up files, knowing when to call IT for assistance with network issues without breaking the bank? Decifering between a minor issue you could have handled or something needing outside assistance? Remember, when you were with a major corporation they fascilitated those emergency services without cost to you directly. Now, you inherit all of the responsibility that comes with owning your own company and inflated costs when you are not aware of scammers who can take advantage of your time and other resources. Get rid of the time killers by being proactive-
Schedule a real vacation-I mean it. Once you allow your personal assistant to peruse your vacation choices, you no longer see yourself in the picture. You have now turned what should have been a personal respite plan into just another day-to-day decision. Making it easier to accept assignments or put demands on your time-even on vacation.
Choose recreational activities that do not involve your computer. I know this is a hard concept but the mental association between working and playing can easily transfer into checking emails or other business. Relieve yourself of that unsuspecting trap by pushing yourself away from the internet. Words like frisbee, baseball, tennis, walking should be an active rule of thumb. Try it sometime!
Best of all you will be rested and able to tackle your business needs more refreshed and rewarded. You deserve it.
Maybe the kids forgot the cupcakes you iced two seconds before they hopped onto the school pavement and you, needing to make it to the bank, market and post office in 15 minutes before your next deadline. Now you must decide whether trailing back to the school is worth losing the five minute coffee break you slaved for by getting everyone out the door on time. You grind it over in your mind knowing all along that the precious looks of your children's grief stricken expressions changed to elation as you, the super parent have done it again! Saving the day by making the second trip to deliver the forgotten sweets to your awaiting young charges. You feel awesome, right?
That may be great and all but the fact remains that you tend to be in crisis mode more often than not. You break less, unless you break down and at those intervals of crazy panic you only allow yourself the time to regroup not actually rest.
Try these simple steps to sublime renewal:
Check the next day's calendar of events to see where possible you can rearrange simple tasks. Either assign these to others or reprioritize-
Let your yes be yes and your no, no. Once business decisions have been made stop second guessing which can cause unnecessary work load increase. Stand by your choices as they should have been researched and well-thought out beforehand. There is nothing worse than micro-managing the simplest of tasks. So don't do it-
Calm down on the sugar intake. Sugary sweets, cereals, the extra shots in your morning coffee can heighten your mood significantly. You may be awake but are you more affective or just wired? Making wiser choices from the outset of your day starts with what you put into your body, so go easy on the sugar-
When the day is done, it is done. Notice what time you stop working as opposed to when you really stop the working process for that day. If it exceeds 30 minutes, re-strategize to see how to accomplish more within the allotted time in your normal work day. Do not keep adding time to the schedule.
Know how much you can really do within your waking hours. Create a grid either on a message board at home for all to see or build one online that you and your staff, family or others who are affected by it, can, at a quick glance detect challenges early. Now positive changes can be made without turning your eight to nine hour day into a fourteen hour distress call nightmare-
Have a back up plan. Are you and your staff on the same page when it comes to backing up files, knowing when to call IT for assistance with network issues without breaking the bank? Decifering between a minor issue you could have handled or something needing outside assistance? Remember, when you were with a major corporation they fascilitated those emergency services without cost to you directly. Now, you inherit all of the responsibility that comes with owning your own company and inflated costs when you are not aware of scammers who can take advantage of your time and other resources. Get rid of the time killers by being proactive-
Schedule a real vacation-I mean it. Once you allow your personal assistant to peruse your vacation choices, you no longer see yourself in the picture. You have now turned what should have been a personal respite plan into just another day-to-day decision. Making it easier to accept assignments or put demands on your time-even on vacation.
Choose recreational activities that do not involve your computer. I know this is a hard concept but the mental association between working and playing can easily transfer into checking emails or other business. Relieve yourself of that unsuspecting trap by pushing yourself away from the internet. Words like frisbee, baseball, tennis, walking should be an active rule of thumb. Try it sometime!
Best of all you will be rested and able to tackle your business needs more refreshed and rewarded. You deserve it.
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