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We're heading into Part 9 of our series that stems from Gretchen Rubin's "Happiness Project" book, and we're now heading into Coach D's favourite points from her Paradoxes of Happiness list and how they also connect to our deep health. And the first one we need to hear on so many levels...
Accomplish more by working less
I guarantee you that 99% of those of you kind enough to read this post, weren't thinking when you were young;
"I want to grow up and be exhausted and stressed out more than not!"
"I want to grow up and work so much that when I get home, I work a bit more, go to bed and then do it all over again the next day!"
"I want to grow up and do things I don't really want to do more often than the things I enjoy"
"I want to push myself so much in work, health and life in general, that I bully myself in my own head every... single... day"
I will say, that when we were young, no one knew the way the modern world would be and how society has shaped us into a "more, more, more" and "go, go, go" culture in order to "be successful". It's not totally our fault. That said, what IS OUR FAULT I believe, is that we relenquish the control of our own health and wellbeing to the modern way of "life". I use "life" in this way because we truly need to ask ourselves;
Are we really living?
SO MANY of us sacrifice balance in favour of work, money, busy-ness, exhaustion and pushing our mind and body to the limit on a regular basis, to the point that we don't incorporate things we love on a regular basis. Many of us completely give up things we enjoy in favour of a life that leads to poor health, high stress and exhaustion. To each their own, but I really have a hard time seeing how this is "living".
It's not just in work though
This isn't just the reality of work-life balance though. This is the all-or-nothing mentality at it's finest. As a Health & Wellness Coach for over two decades, this is VERY evident in our health and what I see in many of my clients of the years;
-We PUSH beyond our abilities RIGHT NOW
-We think MORE of something (even good things) will get us there more efficiently and quickly
-We think toughing it out makes us healthier
-We think being forceful is how we accomplish goals
We think we can ignore and work against our human physiology
Seriously we have to ask ourselves; How's that working for us??
And is that really something we can do for the long haul?
Can you do what you're doing for your health realistically for 10, 20, 30yrs or more??
Do you want to feel the way you're feeling (inside and/or out) moving forward?
Consider the Trade Offs and Be Realistic with Yourself
If working all the time or not giving yourself time for YOU each day is what YOU want, great.... But the trade off WILL BE YOUR DEEP HEALTH: Your stress will weigh on you, your mind will become less focused / more "brain-farty", your body will ache, your sleep will suffer etc...
That TRULY is OK to choose that. It's YOUR life and YOUR body. The issue that arises though is that we're trying to blame other things for our declining health. The reality is your health is suffering BECAUSE you never put your mind and body FIRST. You PRACTICE being in "work-mode" ALL THE TIME.
Do you really want your tombstone to say
"worked 24/7"?????
If you still are ok with that, remember - everything we do has trade offs in life. Stop acting surprised AND stop complaining about your poor health if that's the choice you made.
Quality vs Quantity
Once again, this is against what the modern world throws at us constantly, but the idea of QUALITY work is gone. It's all about quantity. Do as much work, as hard as you can, as often as you can and THAT will make you a "productive" professional/worker/citizen. Yet, the QUALITY of the work is NO WHERE NEAR what it would be if you are healthy, happy, sleeping well, managing your stress and full of energy more days than not.
Companies pump out products that don't last like they used to...
Builders are putting up homes quickly in ridiculous numbers...
We work in workplaces that pile MORE on our plate, to the point where we rush to finish one task so we can get to another... and repeat.
Not only science, but also some of the top business people in the world have their health and their own time (where they're not working) as a priority in their day to increase the quality of work, WHEN they're working.
I know what you're thinking; "But I'm not the boss of my own company, so how can I not do so much?" I've learned over the years that more of my clients ADMIT that their bosses tell them NOT to work after work, but THEIR own guilt, fears etc kick in, so they're doing it to themselves and end up stressed and exhausted.
Those who work say 8am-4pm for example... If that's your time to work, KEEP IT IN THOSE HOURS. I HIGHLY suggest reading this quick blog post from Dr Greg Wells on the topic of Transition Rituals. If more of us would look at our work days in this way, we'd be feeling SO MUCH BETTER inside and out. You may also want to dive into Cal Newport's book "Deep Work" which discussed QUALITY, FOCUSED work for shorter chunks of time throughout the work day vs 8-10hrs of lower quality work, with minimal to no breaks that works AGAINST our brain's physiology.
Ok, I feel like I'm ranting now (as my regular clients roll their eyes I'm sure HAHA!). This TRULY is an issue in our modern society. If we want to change this mentality AND our health, THIS is a focus that needs to be addressed.
This is an area I LOVE helping people begin to practice more realistic, balanced approaches to their day so that they can thrive professionally AND personally. Unfortunately, SAYING "I get it" and DOING it, are two different things.
We desperately need to STOP thinking about changing our approach to work,
We desperately need to STOP saying we're going to change our approach to work-life,
We desperately need to TAKE ACTION to create a balance that WORKS for ourselves as individuals!
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