Tired
My first week back I wrote about feeling like I was jumping up and down telling everyone in IBM-land "put me in, coach!" Johnny laughed and told me that I needed to be patient and that before I knew it, I would have more on my plate than I could handle...
... boy oh boy was he right.
Do you ever have one of those weeks where you are just tired? Where it doesn't seem like you can keep your head above water with all the asks coming your way? Where work / life balance seems like a bit of a joke -- and nothing that you can do can shift it in the right direction?
I'm having one of those weeks. I had one last week too. And looking at my next two weeks, I know I'm going to have them again for the next two weeks. Some of this has to do with the amount of work that I have to do - and some of it has to do with the amount I am traveling; I am still pretty committed to doing day trips as much as I can, but that makes for a very long day - and also throws things a bit out of whack, especially if there are multiple day trips the same week.
Right now, I have a lot of emails that have gone unanswered, a lot of laundry to do (as a side bar, daycare sometimes changes Charlie 3x per day, which is both nice because obviously they are caring for her, and challenging with respect to the amount of laundry it generates), lots and lots and lots of dry cleaning to take to the dry cleaners, and dishes in the sink (another side bar, anyone who knows me knows that this probably stresses me out more than anything).
Yesterday, I was talking to someone who I work with who is feeling the same way that I am and I suggested that she take the day and disconnect from work to refresh and regroup. When she said she would "try", I asked her why it would not be possible to do it - what meeting was so important that she needed to be working the whole week of vacation. And yet, it is tough to take my own advice on that, so to speak. I don't feel like there are things that I can cancel or move around. In fact, I am having multiple things that I am supposed to be doing at the same time that I can't move.
But, if I learned anything on my maternity leave, it's that the world keeps spinning when you take time away. In my current "tiredness" challenge, maybe that doesn't mean that I take a day off - but to remind myself that if I take 2 hours off to be with my family or do something for myself, the world is not going to end. Likewise, it's equally important to take a break and disconnect over the weekend to allow myself a chance to recharge. I know that time with Charlie is about quality and not quantity. But, as a reminder to myself, that sitting on the floor with her while looking at my phone sorting emails is not quality time -- and in reality, it probably makes me feel more tired and stretched thin.
... boy oh boy was he right.
Do you ever have one of those weeks where you are just tired? Where it doesn't seem like you can keep your head above water with all the asks coming your way? Where work / life balance seems like a bit of a joke -- and nothing that you can do can shift it in the right direction?
I'm having one of those weeks. I had one last week too. And looking at my next two weeks, I know I'm going to have them again for the next two weeks. Some of this has to do with the amount of work that I have to do - and some of it has to do with the amount I am traveling; I am still pretty committed to doing day trips as much as I can, but that makes for a very long day - and also throws things a bit out of whack, especially if there are multiple day trips the same week.
Right now, I have a lot of emails that have gone unanswered, a lot of laundry to do (as a side bar, daycare sometimes changes Charlie 3x per day, which is both nice because obviously they are caring for her, and challenging with respect to the amount of laundry it generates), lots and lots and lots of dry cleaning to take to the dry cleaners, and dishes in the sink (another side bar, anyone who knows me knows that this probably stresses me out more than anything).
Yesterday, I was talking to someone who I work with who is feeling the same way that I am and I suggested that she take the day and disconnect from work to refresh and regroup. When she said she would "try", I asked her why it would not be possible to do it - what meeting was so important that she needed to be working the whole week of vacation. And yet, it is tough to take my own advice on that, so to speak. I don't feel like there are things that I can cancel or move around. In fact, I am having multiple things that I am supposed to be doing at the same time that I can't move.
But, if I learned anything on my maternity leave, it's that the world keeps spinning when you take time away. In my current "tiredness" challenge, maybe that doesn't mean that I take a day off - but to remind myself that if I take 2 hours off to be with my family or do something for myself, the world is not going to end. Likewise, it's equally important to take a break and disconnect over the weekend to allow myself a chance to recharge. I know that time with Charlie is about quality and not quantity. But, as a reminder to myself, that sitting on the floor with her while looking at my phone sorting emails is not quality time -- and in reality, it probably makes me feel more tired and stretched thin.
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