Last week I shared an article on LinkedIn about closing the lid on your laptop for the weekend. Little did I know when I selected the article that it would soon be just the advice I needed.
You see, I do truly practice the habits and insights I share with my clients and readers. I just don’t always practice them perfectly. Time can slip away from me during the work week, just as it does for you. Whether it comes as surprises in my schedule, a project that was more involved than expected or I didn’t manage my sleep and thus run low on energy, the weekend can loom large as that perfect opportunity to “make up” the lost time. We all know that we are stealing from ourselves, in the present and in the future, yet we justify that we will make up the theft in greater productivity next week.
The opportunity to practice what I preach more perfectly was provided to me last week with a surprise to my schedule of the funeral service for my aunt. There would not only be a loss of work hours for the service, my mom would be staying with us for the service and then through the weekend. A sad occasion made happier by a welcome visit from mom. The two events would seem to require that I put in some time on the weekend to get things done, but that is not what happened.
It seems that the closing of the lid on a life here on earth makes closing the lid on the computer a bit easier. I rearranged my schedule for the service and to be able to enjoy some unexpected time with my mom. I worked on Thursday and half the day Friday to meet my client obligations — but many other things and “to-do’s” became less important and were rescheduled. The fact that this occurred is even more amazing (to me at least) as I had committed to a week-long coaching certification program that was less than two weeks away.
The passing of my aunt changed the dimension of my time and gave new meaning to those things deemed “important.” I shut the lid on my computer for the weekend to celebrate my aunt’s life by spending time with my family, honoring her and what was so precious and meaningful in her life. In doing so, I received the greatest gift of all — the opportunity to create wonderful, new memories with my family.
In sharing this message, I hope you find the courage to shut the lid on your work life, whether for 30 minutes, 3 hours or 3 days or more and celebrate the life and love of your family.