Happy Summer! I hope that wherever you are, you are enjoying the shift in rhythm that comes with longer days of sunlight, warm weather activities, opportunities to get together with friends, outdoor concerts and festivals, and the ability to connect to nature by just being outside.
To that end, we are kicking off a series called Self-Care Summer. From now until Labor Day, we’ll be sharing Blogs with concrete ways to re-fuel our bodies, minds, and souls.
Are you getting less done in a day than you used to? Do the days when you could speed through your to-do list, checking off one task after another, seem like a distant dream? I’ve lost count of the number of clients over the past few months who have told me that they used to be able to put fourteen things on their to-do list and knock them all out. Now, they put fourteen things on their list, but they're lucky if they get through eight of them. They end up feeling frustrated, disappointed, and like they're failing themselves.
Let’s talk about the global challenge of back-to-back meetings. In many (dare I say most) companies, back-to-back meetings have become part of the time culture. The last three years of remote work have exacerbated the problem exponentially. How does anyone get any work done? What is the impact on productivity?
We all have the best intentions to contain our work to the workday and create clear boundaries between our work and personal lives. But what happens when you truly must get back online to work in the evening after dinner, social or family time to keep on top of your workload? I hear it often from clients. It’s a common struggle to have more to do than fits in a workday.
Whether it’s paper or digital, there are a few principles I recommend to structure your to-do's so your list becomes approachable. The great unlock is to remember that a to-do is not connected to a when rarely gets done. Each to-do has to get assigned a day or a time. Otherwise, you're just hoping to do it when you remember it or when you have a free moment (which doesn’t ever seem to happen). Instead, with just a few actionable tips, your to-do list can transform into a realistic game plan to get your most important tasks done.
How do you fit the time in to exercise in the midst of your busy work and home lives? Once you are out of the habit, I know it’s hard to get the motor turned back on and start exercising regularly. Many people think exercise means 60-90 minutes three times a week, at the gym or in a class. And it can be difficult to break out of that notion; it’s how most of us used to exercise. You may have adopted an all or nothing mentality: you know it’s impossible to exercise as much as you once did, so you stop altogether.
We shouldn’t blindly agree to random requests that will take us away from higher priorities, or are outside our designated lane or expertise (and therefore the most inefficient thing for us to spend time on). In reality, we often want to say no but say yes because we are caught off guard. We get tripped up in an effort to be good team players. There is a way to manage unexpected requests with grace and logic, while also being a great team member.
It’s not just retirement that can put us in this situation. Sudden job loss, illness, or choosing to stay home to raise kids all remove the external structure generated by our work lives. As much as we may sometimes feel slaves to our work schedules, the structure is also powerful and grounding, as an organizing principle for our lives. So, how do you organize your days to be meaningful and fulfilling when you are not tied to an outside schedule?
You can fortify your willpower with some very practical actions that make it easier to stay on track. Instead of just asking, ‘How do I maintain my discipline to eat healthy’, the question you can ask is, “How do I organize my time and space to encourage eating in a healthy way?” That slight shift in approach can set you up for success, giving you the scaffolding and support you need to follow through on your goals.
