Calling something an “emergency” doesn’t make it a true emergency. Most things can wait. Urgent is rarely urgent. Think about the last time you received a text or phone call from your executive during your off hours. Could it have waited until you were back online to address? Most likely, the answer is yes. This episode is a reminder that urgent is rarely urgent. [...]
How do you burnout-proof your life? In this episode, I continue the burnout theme from episode 9, and share 3 practical ways to avoid burnout. Note: I burned out at my last job and it was because I failed to apply these practices. Don't make the same mistake I did! LINKS IN EPISODE Read 10 Driving Forces Behind Burnout for more on what's behind [...]
I burned out in my last job. I'm not proud of it, but it happened. Thankfully, I had some time off in between that job and my next one, which gave me a chance to figure out what had gone wrong. In hindsight, I realize I missed the warning signs that could have prevented my crash and burn. Are you burned out? If you [...]
Taking time off is seen as lazy and many people don't use their allotted paid vacation time. Can we stop pretending the world revolves around us? Let's stop making excuses and use all of our paid time off. Don’t wait till you retire to take a vacation! Here's my article to executives urging them to leave their assistants alone during off ours and vacations. [...]
Something doesn’t feel right, but you’re too busy to figure out what it is. You’re stressed and exhausted, but everyone else is too, so you suck it up and push through. “Just keep grinding, no one cares how healthy I am. They just want me to produce,” you convince yourself. Those closest to you may spot it first, but they don’t always have the [...]
Did you spend time on your favorite hobby over the weekend? Do you even have a hobby? I pretty much gave up on having hobbies for 6+ years. I was too focused on my role at my last company that I didn't prioritize taking time to enjoy life, so unfortunately, I burned out. There's no reason for you to make the same mistake I [...]
As I prepared for my family vacation this summer, I thought about how Americans are terrible at taking vacations. If you didn't know, check this out. In fact, I recently heard someone say, "I get 4 weeks of paid time off each year, but I only use 3 or 4 days." Sound crazy? Well, I used to operate this way. Source: Over [...]
Why am I here? How am I going to get through this? Shouldn’t I be doing something else with my time? Will I ever eat again? These are the questions I ask myself when I’m sitting in a meeting I don’t need to be in. As the meeting progresses, the inner dialogue continues… How did this happen? Did I think about my priorities when [...]
It’s been a long, crazy, up and down year. You're running on fumes, but you tell yourself to “Finish strong” because you have too much work to do. Instead of looking forward to some time off, you’re dreaming about how much you could get done with a few days of uninterrupted time. You make all sorts of excuses about how far behind you are, [...]
In today’s fast-paced, busy-is-productive society, we’re bombarded with texts, emails, deadlines, blog comments, meeting requests, employee conflicts, budget reviews, social media pings, and (fill in the blank). Is your blood pressure rising yet? You likely spend the majority of your day reacting to what’s seemingly urgent, which leaves you little, if any time or energy to work on what’s actually important. How much [...]