Are You All Work and No Play

Click below to listen to this post.

I was in my office on Tuesday morning when Melissa pops her head in and simply says, “Beach?”

I immediately jump on my weather app to check out the forecast for the day.

Mostly sunny with highs in the mid-80s (about 30 celsius).

“Sure! Let me finish up a couple things. I can do the rest tonight.”

“I’ll get our things together,” Melissa says.

After a hot June, July has been wet, wet, wet here in Maine. Beach days have been few and far between and now that we live less than 30 minutes from the coast, we want to grab them when we can.

Remember last week when I wrote to you about the power of planning your week and being mindful about what you’re spending your time on? Well, flexibility is important to, so long as it is implemented mindfully.

Choosing to go to the beach for the afternoon meant I had to be willing to do a couple hours of work after dinner, and that was a compromise I was willing to make.

I still completed my Tuesday tasks, just at a different time of day than I had planned.

I often talk to my clients and members about “gentle parameters,” and this is just what I mean. If you’re too rigid, your resistance is going to give you lots of grief. If you’re too loosey goosey, then your resistance feels like she’s running the show and you’ll get nothing done.

It’s a dance, for sure, but one that gets easier with practice.

Don’t wait until your to-do list is done before you let yourself play (I mean, is it ever done anyway?). Fun is what refuels your engine and keeps you going.

After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. (Where are my Stephen King fans? 🧟‍♀️)