Priorities

Greetings, everyone!

Today's word is taken directly from a webinar series I am currently conducting, titled "Managing Your Priorities."

Although the webinar series pertains to time management, I think we could all take a step back and do a bit better in how we handle our life priorities. I personally tried to do that by going on vacation as I mentioned a few weeks ago. The picture above shows exactly what my priorities on vacation were - peace and quiet!! It was very important to me to have some real downtime on vacation - and we found a spot where I could do just that.

And since we've been back, my priorities have shifted once again. I've been on several overnight business trips recently, which require me to focus on details, details, details. Hotels, directions, where and when to eat - mundane things really, but priorities nonetheless when I'm traveling. When I'm back in the office, I am focused on making sure I have all of my programs ready for upcoming workshops - and that the content of those programs is just what the participants will need for that topic.

On a day-to-day basis though, I can lose sight of my "life" priorities. A whole day can go by and I haven't given my doggie or kitty the pats and pets they deserve. Or maybe I haven't given my husband the hug he deserves for being such a good friend and cheerleader. 

Sometimes, I don't prioritize eating right or exercising - which results in my health not being a priority. Of course, when chocolate is such a big priority, it's hard to worry about eating right :-)!

Sometimes it's rest - I stay up too late or allow my mind to whirl in a hundred different directions as I'm trying to go to sleep. And again, my health can suffer. 

Sometimes it's my attitude that needs priority attention and that's one thing that can slip without me even realizing it. That, then, can affect other priorities - trying to be kind, compassionate, caring...instead of disgruntled, irritated, or moody.

Whatever your "life" priorities need to be, I hope you'll take a few minutes to see where you stand regarding those priorities. And I hope you'll re-prioritize if you need to. 

When we have our priorities straight, so many other aspects of our lives benefit. I'm going to keep working on getting it right - how about you?? 

Blessings,
Linda
www.LindasWorkshops.com

Time

Ha, that's a funny word to talk about, isn't it? Especially considering the LENGTH of it that I have allowed to pass since my last posting :-)

I bring it up today because our perspective on time can change so rapidly. I once heard if you want time to pass slowly, put yourself into a miserable situation (job, marriage, whatever). Hmmm, that does NOT sound appealing to me, although I would like time to slow just a teensy bit over the next few months.

It seems my calendar is more full than it has ever been in my years of conducting training - and I am not complaining!! I love what I do ~ but you know how it goes...when we're TOO busy, we complain about not having enough time - for anything. When we are BORED, we complain because we are waiting for time to pass so we can get to an event or activity in our lives that will be more enjoyable. As always, we seem to never quite be at that perfect place ~ unless of course, we choose to be!

I have little "time pockets" in my calendar over the next couple of weeks and I am trying to be very protective of them - to "choose" being at a perfect place when they come along. I schedule little "mini-vacations" for myself - things like taking 10 minutes for a nice cold frappaccino :-), or just time to read something just for pleasure, because I know over the next 3 months, those little pockets will be few and far between.

In my workshops on "Returning Balance," we often talk about what we are doing with our time. So many of my participants feel that their time is out of their control, but much of it really isn't. Yes, most of us "have" to work - and that takes time. Many of us travel to our workplaces - more time. We do household chores (ugh!), taking more time.

But sometimes we also "fritter away" our time playing on the computer, watching TV, reading something just because it's there, scheduling something we know we won't enjoy...and the list goes on.

My challenge? Pay attention to your time! How can you make it more pleasant, no matter what's going on in your life right now? Can you take a few minutes and enjoy a nice cup of coffee or 60 seconds to really look at that flower blooming in your yard? If we do that - just once - every single day, our time will bring us more pleasure - I promise!

Blessings,
Linda
www.LindasWorkshops.com