Good Habits are hard to form but easy to live with. Bad habits are easy to form but hard to live with. - Napolean Hill
Success is good to acheive but not at the cost of your relationships or your health; you are of no value to anyone if you're unhealthy whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually. Therefore it's important to take regular time outs.
A few years ago I found myself making the mistake like many small business owners make by not taking care of number one - me! I was not only trying to make ends meet for my family, but I wanted to grow a successful business. This meant providing top notch service to my customers along with ensuring work for my employees in a safe environment. As time went on I noticed that I was not sleeping well and was becoming easily irritated or annoyed.
A friend of mine noticed this problem and quickly provided a solution; "take time out for yourself." she said to me one afternoon. She advised me to take at least 1 hour of 1 day of each week to do something for myself that did not include my family, employees or customers.
I was somewhat reluctant at first because I was under the impression that things could fall apart without me, but I must say that it was the best decision that I made. I would go for a walk in a park, read a book,treat myself with something new or just rest.
Over a period of time I began to understand what my strengths were and chose to focus my energies in those areas. As a result I am a better man, father, husband and business owner. It's been about 2 years now since I've implimented this "take a time out" habit into my life. What began as 1 hour a week is now 1 day or 1 week out of the month.
So, If you don't already give yourself "time outs" I strongly advise that you try it; you will experience life like you never have before.
I would like to know about your experience; you can email me at marklorray@gmail.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8eh5KA_26A
2 comments:
Hi Mark,
What a great post! I fully agree with the idea of taking a time out. It ties in with my idea of taking time to play or have fun. (See my blog post "How Can I Afford Time to Play").
I myself practice this habit and have for years. of course from time to time I get caught up in "I've got to get this done." However as I catch myself getting irritable, my shoulders get tight and even my productivity drops I take time to rejuvenate.
It's amazing what it does to our spirits!
Thanks for this, Mark. It's a great reminder. I am going to post Napolean Hill's quote on my whiteboard, too. Last thing: almost every day I shut the door and meditate. I don't get all stringent about it. I just set the timer for 15 mins, get comfy and let my mind drift, but if I start thinking too hard about any one thing, I stop, take a deep slow breath, and start drifting again. It keeps me from being squirrelly! Take care.
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