In Sweden the holidays are coming to an end and many people started to go back to work this week. What about you? Do you long for the routines a bit or do you want to prolong the holidays?
I learned something about myself this summer.
How much I love being busy and doing things that I find meaningful. I will reflect over being and doing because we need both. I love my job, I love the projects I am developing with the aim of becoming an entrepreneur soon. I love my sports and of course being with my family and friends. All in all, I’d say that I’m quite happy with my life right now.
As a teacher I have 7 weeks of summer holiday. This summer I spent 3 of them on my AHA! projects. People were asking me how I could waste my holiday on work.
I don’t look at it that way, at all, I look at it as creating something meaningful that I love! It gives me a lot of fulfilment! It’s not a waste. The contrary. It’s something that puts a smile on my face, something I learn from and something that brings me to meet inspiring people!
Ever since I was a kid I was quite a busy person, with many projects, and a big lust for life, trying different things. Today I realised that my restlessness of too much free time ( and this will probably sound very strange for some ) comes from a feeling of “I am enough rested.” I thrive when I can create things!
I need to add something more, in order to paint a correct picture. I live in a costal town, so if I want, I can create a life where everyday would be like holiday. Living here means that I can enjoy a good quality of life, with a beach in the city center and just a very relaxed vibe. Here people dress more relaxed than in bigger cities, and the tempo is slower. This add to the possibilities of being able to take more regular mini-breaks by the seaside, after work hours and during weekends.
I need my breaks and my holidays too. During the past two years I worked a lot on ’ deep focus’ , paying a lot of attention to what I prioritise in life; specifically to whom and to what do I give my time, and why? The pandemic enhanced that thinking.
Since 3 years back I implemented a walk outside during my pauses at work. This gives me a completely different flow of the day. Should I sit in the teachers lounge every pause, I think I would become very sleepy and tired. A 25 minutes walk every day keeps stress away.
I’m focusing on micro moments too. My life is busy and I need efficient time management to manage work, new company, and above all being my children’s mum.
During the micro moments I focus on awe. I absorb the good and beautiful things around me. I try to listen inwards “what do I need now”. I don’t succeed all the time, but it gets better with practice.
The past 18 months were of course extra challenging with the pandemic. Us primary years teachers in Sweden continued to go to work. This made us experience a lot of stress , as we were risking our own health every day,
I needed to balance that situation. It was difficult. I had to consciously choosing how to deal with it. I became a bit less sociable.
With every choice there is a consequence. Not making a choice creates consequences too. During the pandemic it became even more important to think of my own health, as I was risking it every day at school, with over 400 people under the same roof every day.
I’m fully vaccinated now, and it makes a big difference on how I feel about going back to work next week.
With regards to just being, I have some structures. I listen to music a lot, I read a lot. In the morning I have some calming rituals and I love ending the day calmly with lavender oil.
I do a lot but I also let myself be and use the micro moments in awe.
What about you? What are your structures to create balance?