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Prescription for When You’re Not Yourself

April 26, 2011 in Invest in Yourself, Unstoppable with 0 Comments

How are you feeling?  Hopefully you’re fully charged and rocking it out, rapidly moving toward your goals.

If you’re down in the dumps, discouraged and you job has got you one step closer to calling it quits, it might be time for a little R&R (rest and relaxation).

The warning signs might be there – grumpiness, being short with colleagues, indifference, wondering what’s the meaning of it all (I could go on and on) – but it’s hard to stop and diagnose the problem.

The problem might be systemic, as in a dead-end job where you’re not appreciated for the value you bring or a relationship that should have been ended months ago or whatever ails you.

If you’re not fully engaged and feeling like you’re being productive or you find it harder and harder to get out of bed in the morning for too many days in a row, it might be time for a personal day.  Don’t get personal days?  Call in sick.  Do anything to step away from your day job and inject a little TLC into your life…stat!

Whatever you do, however you do it, just take the freaking day, regroup and do something you love doing.  Or if you choose, do nothing at all.  Sleep and mindless fun are two of the best rechargers out there.

Excuse You Might Be Making – You’ve got too much work on your plate right now.

We all do.  Yes, the work will/might pile up while you’re gone, but with a killer night’s sleep, some well-needed “me” time and an attitude adjustment about how great your life really is, you’ll be primed to tackle and plow through the work.  Don’t make excuses, just book that personal day NOW.  You’ve earned it and it’s much-needed.

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Investing in Yourself Doesn’t Cost a Dime

April 17, 2011 in Invest in Yourself with 0 Comments

“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six hours sharpening my ax.” – Abraham Lincoln

If you’re strapped for cash, you might think you are at a disadvantage versus others.  Yes, you might be in the short-term, but it just might be the best thing to happen to you.  When you don’t have a ton of cash or credit, you can spend your time learning the industry you want to dominate.  If you have access to a computer and the internet, there’s literally millions of blogs and forums out there to read with fresh new content each and every day.

If you have a library card, still free, you can take out books and take notes on what you learn from them.  If you can spring for a $1 notebook, you can borrow a pen or even the notebook and get started.

I’m guessing you have a few spare bucks to spend on a notebook or some resources.  Even if you don’t, even if you have so much debt that it’s depressing you right now, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  Don’t use the excuse of not having any money to not invest in yourself.  While you might be cash-poor, you could be time-rich.  Use your time wisely.  Feed your mind with free books, blog posts and even free ebooks.  Get an online or offline mentor.  Become an apprentice.  Save your cash for that day when you want to take that first step.

Just don’t use the lack of funds for a reason to delay taking action on your goals.  Facebook was started for $1,000.  That might be a lot or a little to you.  People have launched their online careers with nothing more than a free internet connection and a free Twitter account.

Don’t delay.  Sign up for Google Reader and go hunting for great blogs to feed your mind on a daily basis.  Read daily, take notes and most importantly, take ACTION on your ideas.  Your success is guaranteed.

Last thing I want to leave you with.  Re-read Lincoln’s quote.  It’s important to invest the time upfront in order to learnis before  you need to succeed.  I wrote about this before in this post (What’s Your Action ot Planning Ratio?) that you might want to read.

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