Dealing with and overcoming the daily grind
“I pledge allegiance to the grind, and to the exhaustion for which it stands. One professional, over worked, with burnout and frustration for all.”
A recent blog post entitled “I Pledge Allegiance to the Grind” got me thinking. How many are dissatisfied, not because of what they are doing, but because how they are doing it?
You’ve probably heard about the doctor who is burned out after a decade in practice, who just wants to ‘do their own thing’. Can you blame them? Burnout is a result of ‘the grind’. Here are some ways we can step back, reevaluate and regain some semblance of perspective.
1. Start at the beginning. What got you into reverse mortgage lending? Being a business owner, spouse or partner? Think back and remember the ‘why’ when you first began.
Is your workload unmanageable? Does your to-do list far exceed your available time? You could be getting a reality check. In our ‘do-more’ society being busy has been mistaken as the hallmark of success.
Perhaps one of the crowning achievements of civilization is music. It impacts our emotional state of mind, energy and focus within seconds. “People’s minds tend to wander, “and we know that a wandering mind is unhappy,” Dr. Soodsaid. “Most of that time, we are focusing on the imperfections of life. Music can bring us back to the present moment” said Dr. Amit Sood, who practices integrative medicine at the Mayo Clinic. Do you need some melodic relief?
I am bracing myself. For what? The fact that my once quiet gym will be crowded with those starting their New Year’s resolutions. The good news is that by February there should be plenty of room and machines to choose from during my early morning workout. All kidding aside, resolutions do hold some value but many fail.
If you find yourself constantly distracted at the office unable to work on a task, it’s time to leave. Too often the tyranny of the urgent robs our time and prevents us from dedicating our attention and time to projects.
Despite being a highly-organized individual, I still grapple with worry. Last year with a looming deadline ahead I had an epiphany. As I began to chip away at my unsavory project it hit me- a phrase that was almost audible in my mind- “Action Defers Anxiety”.
“Change is as good as a vacation”. Perhaps. With today’s portable digital technology, many of us can enjoy the benefits of working remotely outside of the office.
There is a lot we were never taught in school. Beyond learning how to cook in high school home economics class most of us were never taught how to be productive. Like most professionals my indoctrination into the tenets of productivity was a self-taught effort fraught with countless mistakes, missteps and the satisfaction of finding a system that works.
Is the tail wagging the dog? It’s a question worth consideration if we honestly examine our daily life. Are we in control, or have we built our own prison? Welcome to Friday’s Food for Thought, brought to you by Open Mortgage, where better is possible.