Time management is less about managing our time than it is about managing our energy. No matter what, if our energy is low or misdirected, time becomes irrelevant. Learning to manage our energy can be incredibly freeing and delightfully fun, once we get the hang of it. Balancing work and play, being physically healthy and fit, and aligning our life with our values are great places to start. Having these three in place will provide a solid foundation for creating our best life.

Just as athletes need periods of rest built into their training programs in order to perform at their best, this has also been proven to be a valuable concept for being our best “selves” as well. All work and no play really do make you dull and less efficient than we would be if we allowed rest and time for self care into our day to day life.

Being present, not taking work home, scheduling time for breaks and exercise, will increase our energy and make us much more productive than the false belief that we must work through every break and take no time for ourselves in order to get the work done. What usually happens is we go home drained with little residual energy leftover for the rest of our life. That routine only leaves us prone to stress, and, illness over time.

I have several clients who fit this description, which is why they hired me. They were waking up to the fact that their life was not what they thought it would be and their enjoyment of life had gone downhill for several years now. One woman in particular had been a top performer at work when she first started with her company, but 8 years later she was burning out. She complained that the job kept her so busy, there was no time to take care of herself and when she was home she could never be quite “there” for her husband and daughter. In order to relieve some of the stress of the day when she got home from work, she would pour a couple of cocktails, eat a large dinner, and and go through her evening routine like a zombie.

Also, her health had deteriorated and her blood pressure and cholesterol were now in an unhealthy range. Clearly she was expending or giving away much more of her precious energy than she was putting back. I was able to convince her to start taking regular breaks at work, and schedule two lunch hours to start working out at the YMCA (which she had only used once since joining 5 months earlier).

She noticed the difference taking a morning and afternoon break at work almost immediately. She got more done and was more pleasant around the other staff. However the lunch hour workouts were not working out! She was determined though, and decided that after work would be a better time and would allow her a transition from work to home. She was right. It made a world of difference. Once home, she drank a tall glass of ice water with lemon because she felt healthier and didn’t want to negate her new healthy practice of regular work outs by drinking alcohol. She began to eat better, using her breaks at work to have healthy snacks and making time for lunch. By eating more during the day, her blood sugar remained steady and she was less hungry at the evening meal making it easier to eat moderately at dinner. Not feeling stuffed and drained, she had more energy for her husband and 6 year old daughter in the evenings. She began sleeping better at night, waking up earlier and more rested, which allowed her to spend more morning time with her family at breakfast. She lost weight, and her blood pressure and cholesterol have come down.

In our coaching we talked about being present and focusing on “now”. So when she was at work, she would focus on work and when she was home, she would focus her attention there. We also assessed her values, which not surprisingly were Love, Health, Accomplishment, and Responsibility. Previous to coaching she was very much out of line with her values. Now that she is living her life more in tune to what she values-she is happier and more energetic.

As we continued our work together, she began to notice how her change was affecting everyone around her. Healthier energy attracts good energy from others. She is also more aware of the importance of being “present” in her life and how it gives her life more meaning.

Life really is an “Amazing Journey” - we just have to have the courage to take it.

Debra Betterly, Ph.D. is a Life Coach whose specialty is midlife mastery. This article is derived from her eNewsletter, “Second Acts”, a spirit-mind-body approach for women re-inventing the second half of life. Please visit http://www.amazingjourneycoach.com where you can receive her free eCourse, “Eight Steps to Creating Positive Life Changes in Midlife” http://www.amazingjourneycoach.com/eightsteps.html,subscribe to her free eNewsletter and learn more about her “Midlife Mastery Club” membership along with other transformational programs.

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