Things that need to be invented
1. A kitchen sponge or other wiping tool with which you can wipe down your counters yet avoid dumping all the crumbs in the floor.
2. Something to keep water from dripping down your arms when you brush your teeth or wash your face (I guess that might be a wristband, but I’m after something more glam).
Sometimes the small stuff really gets to me. I’m not a real visionary thinker – I’ll never come up with the next great tech gadget or website. But this small stuff takes up a lot of room in my brain. I think a lot about how to solve daily problems and be more efficient. I think that is why I like magazines so much. I always think they are going to have that perfect solution that will make life so much easier.
Break from routine
As much as I crave and am comforted by routine, sometimes I need the breath of fresh air that a break from routine can create. If my energy is low and I feel like I am sleepwalking through my days, that is usually when I know I need a break from my routine.
The last couple of days have been a break. On Wednesday evening, we went to The Globe for happy hour. What a neat place, very clean and minimalist. We sat outside and enjoyed the great weather and good drinks. I loved that they served wine in a small glass tumbler instead of a wine glass and have been considering doing the same myself at home.
The Globe is in the middle of an area of Midtown that has changed so much. Near Georgia Tech, it’s full of new restaurants, office buildings, condos, shops, and interesting open spaces. So that was fun to see something so new and different not five miles from my own home. Unfortunately, we ended up having dinner at Ray’s Pizza, and it was dismal and greasy, but I’m trying to repress that and focus on the tumblers!
On Thursday, I changed my routine again. Instead of doing my run early in the morning (due to over-wine at happy hour!), I ran when I got home in the afternoon. A small change, but I remembered how beneficial it is to run in the evenings. It really wipes away any stress from the day and any leftover anxiety that I bring home at night. I don’t think I’ll be switching from mornings to night on a regular basis, but it’s good to know that night is a good option, especially as the mornings start to get cool.
A little at a time
I’ve taken up a project at work that is a fun challenge. It involves making changes to some processes that we have in place. They are TINY processes, but the way we do them now is ridiculously complicated and out of date. This was brought to my attention in the last couple of weeks, when I tried to explain the process to some new employees. It was incredibly stressful! So I am working with another gal to get it all organized and efficient.
I have found that having a patient and thoughtful approach to this project is very helpful. Letting the new system evolve with guidance seems to be working well. Gaining feedback and collaborating with other system users is also helpful. I’m not steamrolling in with a new plan, I’m digging into why and how it exists today, and weighing new solutions as I learn.
Patience must be tempered with discipline, however. I struggle with procrastination, particularly when something is not pressing, so I have been forcing myself to look at this project every day for a short time. When I look at it, I work on it, and in that way, I move things along at an even pace, every single day. I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel on this one.
I can’t sleep.
Sometimes I have insomnia. It seems to be (ahem) hormone-related, but there are weeks in which I get a good night’s sleep maybe every other night. And by ‘good night’s sleep,’ I mean I still get up a few times to go to the bathroom and wake up and check the clock a few times, but I get seven or eight hours regardless.
Last night, I woke up at about 4:30am and never went back to sleep. My mind started racing, thinking about things I don’t have time to think about during the day, coming up with ideas that I forget by the time I get out of bed. I am unable to relax myself and calm down. I’ve tried deep breathing, relaxing my body, self-talk (silently, of course!), but my brain just has to take its time winding down when it’s been so busy. Unfortunately, today, it didn’t wind down until … just now. In the middle of my workday.
I’ve had this problem for many years, and there are periods of months when it’s worse than others. I had a really dramatic car accident (I was fine, car was done) in 2003 that I attribute to sleep deprivation. I know my work suffers, and my social life, too, because sometimes it’s really all I can do to get through the day.
Enough whining. I need to find a way to fix this problem. I’m going to try an eye mask – any kind of light in the room seems annoying to me. Maybe do some research…
Shopping Trip
I had a fabulous weekend. It was nice to have some time to putter, to catch up, to get organized. However, one of the few low points of the weekend was a trip to the mall. What a waste of time! I’ve been feeling an itch to get some new clothes and personal things, particularly after having to throw away (they truly weren’t even nice enough to give to the Salvation Army) some really worn, disgusting items that I had to get rid of before I wore them again and committed serious crimes of fashion!
So I went to Perimeter Mall on Saturday afternoon (also motivated by news of new Sur La Table store there…). It was noisy, crowded and overwhelming. There is so much merchandise, so many options, that I got tired very quickly. And the more I looked, the lower-quality the stuff looked. Even the expensive name-brands looked tacky and cheap. I can get tacky and cheap at Target. Actually, I get pretty nice things at Target and get lots of compliments on them (a sales clerk at Nordstrom complimented my Target purse – but she was probably just trying to prep me for the hard sale). And I save a ton of money compared to mall clothes.
The sales clerk issue brings up another topic: I really hate being bothered by salespeople when shopping. No, I don’t need help finding anything. No, I haven’t heard about your big sale, but you couldn’t pay me to take home most of this stuff.
The mall was really a soul-draining experience. Watching thousands of people who have nothing better to do than consume on a Saturday afternoon made me not ever want to be one of them again.
Still trying!
It’s probably obvious that I am still struggling with trying to get back on a regular schedule. I’m not sure if it’s the lingering effects of the long vacation, or the change of seasons, but I’m having a hard time getting a grip on things. Work is a challenge every day. I try hard to stay focused and positive, to be organized and productive. But I get worn down so easily, by the constant noise and interruptions, by frustrating systems and procedures, by the daily misunderstandings, ineffective communications, and general chaos. But again, it’s Sunday, and I’m going to resolve one more time to accomplish meaningful work and do my best with everything that I do.
This blog has been a source of minor frustration, too. Why am I doing it? Why keep it up? Clearly no one is reading, but getting an audience was never really my goal. I see it as an outlet for whatever creativity and ideas I may have, but maybe I overestimated those? I enjoy coming up with ideas to write about, by seeing patterns in what I write and being surprised by some of the things I write, but it’s also a tiny little stressor, because I feel obliged to post more often than I do, and I just don’t know if I have enough ideas and thoughts in me to do that. But this feels good, and maybe I can do a small resolution about the blog this week, too. A few good posts…
Getting back to the routine
After almost two weeks away from the office, I am back. It is actually comforting to be back into an established routine that I don’t have to think about much. No decisions to make, no directions to find, just the usual stuff. It’s tough getting used to the long days again, though. Staying focused from 8am until 5pm is pretty draining when you are used to long afternoons reading books, swimming, and enjoying a beer or two!
But I have a new outlook on work as a result of my vacation. I feel really refreshed and inspired to be positive at work, and to commit myself to getting things done with mindfulness and quality. I’m trying to get organized both personally and professionally, making new lists, using new tools (and using old tools with new enthusiasm), and generally staying focused.
It’s almost like I’m starting a new school year, just like the kids are now. I have a new chance to be better and to do better. We all do, really, every day. When I’m stumped by something, or feel negative about something I’m doing (or don’t want to do, or am putting off), I ask myself why. Lots of times, it’s because I feel like it’s too much work, or it doesn’t mean anything, or I can’t get it done perfectly. But that is self-defeating.
Just because I can’t solve every problem does not mean I can’t solve an important problem that’s right in front of me right now. Just because I can’t be perfect doesn’t mean I can’t be productive. And just because a task is big, with a lot of components to it, does not mean that I can’t just start whittling away at it and make progress.
Where are the Gen-Y’ers?
It’s very strange, every career/workplace article I read lately talks about how Generation Y is invading the workplace. I guess these are people just coming out of college or a little older. According to the popular buzz, they are high-energy, highly-educated, technology-savvy, self-absorbed, and impatient for career success. They are also emotionally unintelligent and are poor communicators, according to the conventional wisdom.
Outside of maybe two staffers, our office has not seen the influx of these kids yet. Rather, our office is staffed with consultants with many years of experience. Most of these consultants are more baby-boomer age. And they don’t appear to be going anywhere. In my twelve years, we have only had one woman retire. As we say in our marketing literature, our people are the key differentiator for us.
I think it’s a big mistake for companies to discount or dismiss older workers just because they don’t want a Blackberry and they have a family life that they prioritize. Technology changes so quickly, but the value of business experience never becomes obsolete. When I interact with the few younger workers we do have, I find myself stressed at times because I see them making the same assumptions and mistakes that I did. But I guess they’ll have to figure things out the hard way like I did, at least until I write my book – “The 150 Things I Learned the Hard Way at Work.” haha!
I’m not overworked.
It’s almost like a confession. In our society, it’s really important for people to feel important, and the easiest way to feel important is to be busy. Or at least to talk about how busy you are, a lot. And a big part of being busy is being really busy at work. If you’re not busy at work, or, more importantly, if you aren’t always talking about how busy you are and how you will never catch up, people get suspicious. If you admit that you are not super-busy and completely overworked and overstressed, your coworkers don’t trust you. They think somehow you are beating the system, or you are shirking your duties.
I can’t buy into all of this. We are only as busy as we choose to be. You can either let other people and outside influences dictate your life, or you can control your work and your personal life to a degree in which you only do what you need and want to do, nothing more. Prioritize tasks and manage your time. Everything does not need to be done. Maybe not now, maybe not ever, and certainly not perfectly. Know your strengths and plan your work around them. Do the hard stuff first. Try ignoring those tiny little ‘to-dos’ on your list and see if the sun rises again tomorrow. Maybe the universe won’t come to a complete halt if you don’t do every errand or make every call. Sure, people want stuff from you, but maybe they won’t mind if you don’t give it. After all, you are probably not as important to them as you are to yourself.
And for god’s sake, quit telling me you’re so busy.
Back from the beach!
I can’t believe the beach week is over already. We had such a great time. It was very nice to spend time with my family and relax for a whole week…I can’t think of the last time I’ve been away for so long.
On to the next trip! On Thursday, R and I leave for Maine. Actually we fly in and out of Boston, but we will spend most of our time in southern Maine, Boothbay Harbor, Monhegan Island, etc. We went to Maine last Labor Day weekend, and it was such a surprise to me. I had never been there, and had very low expectations. But it was beautiful and perfect. The weather is cool and refreshing after a Georgia summer, the towns are really picturesque with amazing historic architecture and gardens, plus harbors, cute shops and restaurants. It is not especially crowded over Labor Day either, at least compared to earlier in the summer (so says R). And we had a great time enjoying everything, eating lobster, hanging out together. For us, it’s a total break from a busy, stressed-out Atlanta.
Thus begins fall. From here, time just accelerates until Christmas.
