FC Member Blog

Stressed By My Own Stress Management- Pull the Plug!

BY Simma Lieberman | 03-20-2009 | 3:08 AM

This blog is written by a member of our blogging community and expresses that member's views alone.

I’m at the airport on my way to Las Vegas to facilitate a program on Stress Management in These Stressful Times for hotel executives, and I’m feeling really stressed. In fact at this moment sitting in the airport is like a vacation.

There are times when I recede into sitting down at my computer at 7:00 AM and the next thing I know it’s 10:00 PM and I’ve reached the point of diminishing returns on my productivity, but I keep going and it takes me 3 hours until 1:00 AM to accomplish what it would take me one hour to do if I waited until morning.

But then an alarm in my head rings and a voice keeps saying “life-work balance,” over and over. It reminds me that I have a responsibility to take care of myself and do what I teach other people to do which is to consciously create life/work balance and be aware when my stress level is going on alert.

I tell myself that what I’ve done is enough, shut off the power and get up.

I start to berate myself and then stop. I know they’ll be days that I’ll be at my desk for hours. The issue is not giving everything I need to do for my business equal weight, but knowing when to let go of the less important items on my list and do them another day.

I also know that I can’t talk to other people about stress and life/work balance if I don’t take the time for myself.

So I get up in the morning, put my running shorts on and I’m out the
door for a run and time at the gym. When I return my mind will be
clear and I’m ready to work and spend time with friends in the evening.

Simma Lieberman
"The Inclusionist"

Simma Lieberman Associates
Consultant, Speaker, Author
Diversity and Inclusion, Power Living
510.527.0700
Fax: 510.527/0723
1185 Solano Ave. PMB 142
Albany, CA 94706
simma@simmalieberman.com
www.simmalieberman.com

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