I think the topic is applicable to everyone who works. Whether you work for someone or for yourself. You do your best work when you are energized and excited. You can only be energized and excited if you have balance in your life – as a colleague of mine says, you need to fill your buckets before you can do a great job.
When you work for someone else, that can be as simple as not taking work home on the weekend, or taking a two week vacation. When you work for yourself, it gets a bit more complicated. You need to find the opportunities between client needs to refresh yourself.
I’ve found myself thinking lately about all the things I have to do. The problem is I work better at things I get to do. My blinking alarm was telling me that it was time to take a break. But I still had all these things I had to do.
When I get in this cycle I find it works to look at when I think I can take a break – next week, after a milestone/deadline has passed, whatever works.
Then I plan what I’ll do with my time off and as the day approaches I let people know I am taking a day off.
I find the planning helps me feel like I’m taking a bit of time off because I’m thinking of what I want to do. Not only what I have to do.
I planned my day off for last Thursday and protected the day by letting clients and my business partner know I would not be available. And, it worked.
I not only got Thursday off, but I have been doing more reading and relaxing since Thursday than I’ve done for a couple of months. The added bonus is when I think about the work on my plate, and getting more work, it feels like something I get to do again.
What do you do to fill your buckets?
Happy PMing
Perry
Tags: consulting, Lessons, motivation, opinion, tips
Good advice, Perry. My husband and I went to Vancouver this past weekend for some grown up time — very rejuvinating.