Three months of pedal to the metal can really take its toll on you. I was loving every minute of it and I don’t think I even realized how busy I was and how much I was actually taking on. My mind just kept saying more, more, more! But after such a stretch, it’s important to make sure you take a bit of time to take a breath, relax, and ground yourself. Take a nap. Sleep in. Do the things that you haven’t done in a long time because they “aren’t productive” because honestly, you aren’t going to be productive if you don’t because you’ll be out of gas. I watched at least an entire season of the Mindy Project. And some of that was in the middle of the day when I’d usually be working. Good idea? Depends on your perspec- tive. At this point, there wasn’t a ton that I needed to get done. The most important thing for me was to get rest so that I could strategically plan next steps. Your brain won’t be strategic if it’s too tired. 2. FOCUS ON OTHER AREAS OF YOUR LIFE I had some friends that I hadn’t seen in what felt like forever. And I felt like I had barely seen my fiancé in awhile either. Even though we live together. When you are giving it your all in one area of your life, other areas are going to suffer, that is just how it is. It’s not real- istic to think you can be the super entrepreneur, the best partner, the friend who is there for everyone, improve your half marathon PR, and nail your role in a play all at the same time. Some might say that’s a limiting belief. I say it’s reality. Take some time to refocus on the areas that might have been neglected. Go on a date with your partner. Go for a girl’s night or for coffee with friends. Go for a nice long run (even if you struggle through the entire thing). Refocus and make sure you are creating a well-rounded life for yourself that isn’t only fulfilled when it’s full of work activ- ities. 3. TAKE A BREAK FROM TECHNOLOGY
this.
But it’s easy to become addicted and obsessive. When I was running webinars, I couldn’t help but check on the registra- tion numbers every few hours. And I couldn’t help checking my list size, my ad analytics, my likes and comments on my posts, you name it. It got very obsessive. And that’s not even the worst part. When the webinars had all been done, and there wasn’t really anything equivalent to check on, I still kept grabbing my phone to look at for some instant gratification. But like I said, there wasn’t much to even be looking at other than social media likes. And we really don’t want to go down that rabbit hole. TAKE A BREAK. I logged out of Facebook and Instagram (on a Saturday) and told myself that I couldn’t go back in for 12 hours. I wouldn’t be missing any work stuff on a Saturday. And when I’d grab my phone, the prompt for me to log in would remind me that I made this pact with myself. Because often I just go in without realizing its just a habit. Second. Don’t be afraid to leave your phone at home if you are going out for dinner or something quick where you in no way will need your phone. And don’t be afraid to let your battery run out and leave it off for a couple of hours. The battery on my phone has been super wonky and needs to be replaced. That gave me the perfect excuse to just leave it off for a bit. You probably won’t miss anything. I didn’t. And it helped me be more mindful of social media just out of habit. These strategies helped me rest my body and mind and return to my work feeling re-energized and excited about my work. Whenever you go through an intense period of work, I recommend that you follow these strategies to make sure you are always performing at your best. And if that’s really hard for you, like it is for me, start small.
I don’t really love saying this. And I really don’t love doing
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OCTOBER 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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