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Susan Pilgrim, Ph.D. specializes in engaging the spirit of individuals, teams, and organizations.

Who'll Take Care Of the Business If You Burnout?

Susan Pilgrim Ph.D.Decision makers in companies of all sizes often believe they're indispensable and that the company's profits and livelihood rest solely on their shoulders. Because of this belief, they don't take vacations or, if they do, they take along their laptop, leave a number so anyone can call, and call in frequently. They're ever accessible anytime, day or night by cellular phones and pagers. They only socialize with business associates and clients. When they are with family and friends, they think about business. They miss important family events because work just had to get done. Does this sound like you? Then you might be on the road to burning out.

Do you find that you feel exhausted all of the time, have a short temper, or forget important or everyday events? Are you uncharacteristically having difficulty making decisions? Is your creativity stifled? Are you having trouble seeking solutions to conflicts? Are you relying on alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax? Do you find you're micro-managing work because you don't trust others' judgment? Rather than ignoring, medicating, or attributing your "condition" to that's just the way business is, it may be time to reevaluate your relationship with your work. It's imperative to listen to the signals you're receiving so you can gently take better care of your self and your company. It's time to take action to stop the burning-out process.

Here are some simple, practical strategies for recovering from and preventing burnout. They're most effective when used on a regular basis.

  • Take real vacations. Schedule vacations and leave your laptop at home. Refrain from announcing where you're staying or the telephone number. Refrain from calling into the office every day. Plan at least one weekend retreat each quarter.
  • Take daily breaks. Give your mind and body a break. Take a short walk. Read the funny paper. Exercise in the middle of the day. Play a game of "What if..." [What if we..., what could happen?] Eat healthy meals away from your desk. Play with those toys hidden in your desk drawer. View the art in the office lobby. Relax by taking deep breaths, listening to quiet music, practicing yoga, meditating, or enjoying nature.
  • Keep the BIG picture in mind. Micro-managing the work and getting upset over trivial or insignificant details adds nothing to the business or your life. Hire the right people and trust them to carry out their responsibilities. When inundated by minutia, ask yourself, "In the big scheme of things, how important is this?" Act based on your response.
  • Nurture the relationships with yourself and others. Schedule personal and family time. Make appointments for exercising, hobbies, family events, time with your partner, time with yourself, and put them in you calendar. Refrain from canceling them because they're your appointments.
  • Be 'in the moment.' Limit the amount of time you spend working and thinking about working when you're away from the office. When you're at your son's ball game, refrain from using your cell phone to make business calls. When you're with your partner, don't let work dominate the dialogue. When you're at work, be fully present.
  • Stay connected with your purpose. When you know what you're all about, why you get up in the mornings, why you do the work you do, then each of your actions can support your purpose. When circumstances and events seem to be out of control, ask yourself, "Am I acting, thinking, and feeling on purpose today?" This will help you maintain congruence with who you are, what your purpose is, and what you're doing.

When you're gently taking care of your self, you're also taking care of business.

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Susan Pilgrim - Health Communications

A Practical Guide for Taking Gentle Control of Life

Living InSync is a way of life, a way of living, a lifelong process that exemplifies the mind-body-spirit interconnectedness in life. The essence of being InSync is found in the five dimensions of life--physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual.Living InSyncŪ means assessing and optimizing your personal power, understanding yourself and others, envisioning what you want from life, making conscious choices and pursuing goals to be the person you want to be. By assessing your personal power, you become creative, decisive and productive and can take gentle control of your life. Living InSyncŪ offers a personalized, proactive, step-by-step approach to help you assess where you are in life, who you want to be, and where you want to go. Maintaining a balance between and within the dimensions offers you a perpetual challenge because the evolving nature of your being is dynamic and ever-changing. By responding to life's challenges in new ways and by recognizing that perfection is a static, nonexistent state, you'll experience insights about yourself and the unlimited opportunities for success and peace. You'll find that when you live InSync with yourself, you're more InSync with others and the Spirit.

Dr. Susan Pilgrim, author of Living InSyncŪ -- Creating Your Life with Balance and Purpose (Health Communications Inc.) and Moving InSyncŪ with the Spirit (in press), and president of Life Investments, is an Atlanta-based international speaker, business consultant, and coach. She specializes in engaging the spirit of individuals, teams, and organizations. Her work represents a unique blend of experience and education in the areas of business management, education, and psychology.

She customizes programs to meet the needs of the client and designs them to increase personal, professional, and organizational productivity. Susan's committed to positively influencing the lives of those in her audiences. She encourages all who experience her work to invest in themselves so they can get what they want in life. She earned her B.S. at Presbyterian College, her M.Ed. at the University of South Carolina, and her Ph.D. at Georgia State University. Her memberships include the National Speakers Association, American Society for Training and Development, and the Georgia Society of Association Executives. Her columns appear in a number of business, health, and personal development publications.

Susan Pilgrim, PhD
877.467.9627
209.825.9459/fax
spilgrim@transbay.net

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