“I just don’t do ‘rest’; I am such an active person, the thought of resting or taking time out seems lazy, unproductive and wasteful of my precious time!”
Do you agree? Can you associate with these thoughts?
A few years ago, I used to think that, too.
I felt like I always had to be doing something. For example, even when I was tired at the end of a long working week, if I wasn’t out catching up with my friends on a Friday or Saturday night, it felt like a total waste of time. The slight attempt to chill out on a chaise longue on the beach made me feel restless.
‘Chilling’, ‘slowing down’ and ‘relaxing’ weren’t words in my vocabulary. You’d never find me winding down in a spa.
Many of my clients, to begin with, feel that way, too.
In fact, the opening sentence of this article are the words of one of my clients.
Before we started working together, I asked her why she wanted to enrol in my one-on-one coaching programme with me given that from what she had described her life, on the outside at least, looked well organised.
Alison explained: “I have a very busy life, work, family, relationships and difficulties. Plus, I am an amateur athlete and train daily for big events. So, if there is someone who can find me more time, make me more efficient, help with decisions, offer solutions or ideas, I am all for it.”
Then, she added:
The athlete in me always seeks those little incremental gains, they are what make the big difference in the long run.
She obviously came to me to learn how to get even more done in the time that she has available, not about how to take time out for herself.
As a part-time VA, Alison was reasonably effective during her working hours.
As an athlete, she was exercising regularly, she was eating well, and she was full of energy during the day. Not something that can be said for most of the people with whom I work.
When coaching my clients one-on-one, I learn about how they spend their days and really get into the nitty-gritty in what is happening in their lives. This is when it becomes very interesting as I’m able to observe aspects of their lives that they don’t get to see or even recognise. Often, they just take that a situation is how it is and there is no other way around it.
Women often simply accept that they have to juggle work, look after the family and do all or most of the housework, too. In their attempt to get as much ticked off their long to-do lists, they skip meals, rarely get around to exercising and feel guilty when they sit down to rest.
In Alison’s case, one of the key things that I observed was that while she was supposed to be working part-time, it turned out that she was working ALL THE TIME – in the mornings, in the afternoons and in the evenings, five or more days a week!
At the end of our time together, Alison shared with me was that what became apparent for her was that she didn’t rest or have anywhere near enough ‘me’ time.
As someone who “just didn’t do rest” at first, it was a challenging task for her to schedule time for herself in the diary. For her, the thought of resting or taking time out seemed lazy, unproductive and wasteful of her precious time.
Now, she sees that as an important part of her life. Proactively integrating more ‘me’ time in her days and weeks has positively impacted Alison’s mindset and have given her a much-needed balance in her very busy life.
When you’re juggling so much it can be difficult to see the wood from the trees and what you can do to carve out time for yourself. And this is where I come in to help you create a personalised solution that works for you by showing you how you can use your time and energy more effectively.
If you’ve had enough of spinning your wheels, trying to figure this out on your own, Jump-Start Your Way to a Successful Balanced Life is your opportunity to fast-track creating the life you desire.
Here’s how Allison Kaye summarised our time together:
“Mira’s knowledge is broad and her fresh approach was welcomed. I cannot thank her enough for this opportunity, my head is clearer; my career now feels it has a strong future and direction.
These were very inspiring few weeks with Mira who coached me through some big hurdles in my life.
From simple and productive solutions to complex and planned strategies to making my career more efficient and getting my personal life back on track. It was clear she had put so much thought into our weekly sessions.
Thank you, Mira, for your ‘Mira Moments’.”
Go on, you know you want to:
Jump-Start Your Way to a Successful Balanced Life!
Photo Credit: realhardwork - Pixabay
