Finding Balance When you Love Your Work

Well, not that I haven’t been thinking about blogging, but I do admit, I have not gotten back to it lately. Thought of several things I would like to write/ post on, but haven’t been able too. Lately I have said, “The only thing getting in my way is that there are only 24 hours a day.” After thinking and saying this a dozen times, I realized something is wrong. 24 hours a day should be enough. Why was it not enough time for me? My friend Antonio recently asked me, “you do sleep right?” Again, another glaring fact that I don’t’ really sleep that well or for that long. I’m too busy, I have too much to do and too much on my mind.
I want to share this with others because I don’t think I am alone on this “highway of busy” nowadays. I absolutely love what I do, so part of it is being caught up in loving what I do and wanting to do more of it. I bring people together. I find resources for groups to share. I am able to “connect dots” meaning I find ways for people to meet each other, connect with one another and collaborate with one another to build community. How great is that! Well, if I want continue what I feel God has blessed me with; I am going to have to find balance. I thought I did, until subtly I realized I am working 24/7. Even my workouts and walks with my dogs have become a part of a “thing to do list” so where is the recreation in it? With this realization I realize I need to start utilizing the “sharpening saw” philosophy of Stephen Covey more. He talks about “renewing the four dimensions of your nature – physical, spiritual, mental and social/emotional.
My first of my four dimensions to tackle will be physical. Not that it is one at a time, but I will share one dimension with you at a time. Hoping this break down might inspire you to take a leap into the world of balance and “sharpened the saw” theory.
Physical: So far I am working out which is a great thing considering how busy I am, but I need to chart this work out time with balance of down time. I find myself racing to kickboxing or hurrying the dogs through the park or taking off five minutes from my bike spinning or worse… skipping a workout so I can get back to work. Or, how about working out and the whole time having my mind race with things I need to do, people I have to call back, etc.
No more. I am going to carve out 2 hours a day for workout. This might seem extreme to some of you reading this, but guess what. I have been working 12 to 16 hours a day for seven days a week lately (months) and so enough is enough.
I need time to exercise, recover from working out, and eating well. Part of the physical is eating right so no more “cupboards are bare syndrome” for me. I will include healthy eating by going to the Farmer’s Market weekly and the local supermarket simply by including it in my day. This will give me the stamina everyone expects of me and what I want for myself. This will give me the ability to be work at my full potential without a draining feeling attached.
Okay, the panic sets in as I open my preview of next week’s calendar. Can I really have this much planned in one week? What do I do about people who are inviting me to other meetings, venues, coffee talks, etc? I guess this part of the physical that will help me “exercise” my ability to say I am not available. Never did I think I would stretch the “physical” dimension in my life to include the ability to exercise my rights and needs too. I’ll have to reread Covey’s section in his book to see if this type of exercise came up in his Sharpening the Saw section. For me it is going to have to be a matter of some “no thank you’s” or “maybe next time” so that I do have down time to keep my workouts consistent, enjoyable and healthy! No more stressing out that I shouldn’t be jogging because I need to be working…. This is a new chapter to my day that I am going to write in my daily calendar.

Carina Connects

I am learning all about Social Media and just attended the Gravity Summit yesterday in Los Angeles. They weren't kidding when they said we were going to get a "firehose" of information. Yet, it was so informative and inspiring for me to add this to my tools for connecting people with people and people with resources. Among my many hats my first hat is the LLB Connected Corridor Project Director, I am also part of a restaurant family in Long Beach, Nino's. Finally I am the project mgr/consultant for the LBCC Entrepreneur Academy. I hope to share resources, links and happenings in the Long Beach community so we can be aware of resources and great people working on building community.