Working 16 hours a day. Running from soccer match to soccer match. Rushing for appointments. Doing errands. Managing a workforce. Staying up until 4am playing catch-up.
This is my life! As a CEO, career coach and staffing strategist, wife and mother of two, I’m an over-doer and an over-thinker! I am constantly super-amped and on overdrive! There never seems to be enough hours in the day to do everything I need to do!
Does this sound like your life, too? Do you feel like you are on a treadmill that you can’t get off? Did you ever envision that this would be your life? I never did!
Life is too short to feel unfulfilled and burnt out! Don’t we owe it to ourselves to live the best life possible? I truly believe that it’s never too late to change. We all have the power to look inward, to reflect and redirect our energies.
I’m starting to evaluate the quality and purpose of my life. I’m about to step off the treadmill, to refresh and renew. (And to sleep, which I don’t do very often.) I’m excited to share my journey with you and hopefully inspire you along the way!
Last month, I started my personal transformation by reading The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo. This de-cluttering method focuses on embracing a minimalist lifestyle and living solely with items that bring joy. I let go of many, many trash bags full of “stuff” and in the process found a great deal of peace and renewed sense of calm in my home. By asking, “does this bring me joy?” to every item in my closet, I was able to start simplifying my environment. I feel inspired to make this question a constant part of my life and I hope you will, too.
I’ve also been listening to meditation audio when I have a chance to build some positive habits into my life. It is a relaxing, quick and powerful method that may provide the change you want.
Tomorrow, I’m leaving rainy New Jersey to go on a personal six day retreat to Sedona, AZ called Inner Journeys. It focuses on spiritual growth and self-discovery. Not a boondoggle or an over-the-top spa destination, my trip will be a low-frills wellness get-away (no make-up required)! I hope to learn and evolve to be happier and more purpose-driven in everything I do.
Here Are Four Life Lessons I Can’t Wait to Explore Along The Journey:
1) BALANCE: We all work too much and play too little; think too much and feel too little. Personally, I have been craving connections: with music, with nature and with exercise. Like many entrepreneurs, moderation and boundaries are lacking in my life. What interests, hobbies or past-times are you looking to connect with?
2) RELATIONSHIP WITH TIME: This four-letter word seems to motivate everything I do. I have been on a race with myself to “beat the clock” for as long as I can remember – I seem to take “Living In The Moment” too literally. I try to accomplish as much as I can in one day fearing there will be no tomorrow. Are things that I am cramming in my daily life really matter? Do they help me achieve my purpose? I need help with this. Does time run your life, too?
3) GRATITUDE: Since recovering from breast cancer, I have been moving too fast to stop and realize how lucky I am. While I was ill, I was so busy scrambling to keeping my companies healthy that I didn’t focus on the miracle that is my life. I want to learn how to embrace those things that are most important.
4) MAKING PEACE: We all have personal struggles and challenges that continue to loom emotionally long after they end. Job loss, illness and other personal disappointments and despair. Whatever you are carrying around, it is far healthier to deal with it and move forward than to keep it bottled up inside.
I can’t wait to take care of myself, reflect and enjoy the beauty of the Sedona mountains. I’m excited to have you along for the ride, too!
I’ll be taking daily video snippets (when appropriate) and posting them to my new YOUTUBE channel. I don’t know what is in store for me. But, I am excited to deviate from my daily routine and experience something off the beaten path. I hope my video journey to the retreat inspires you to lighten your load and live life better, too!
Gail Tolstoi-Miller is an award-winning entrepreneur, CEO, career coach and staffing strategist. Her companies, Consultnetworx and Speednetworx are focused on connecting people for mutual fit and success. The firms’ new division, Careernetworx, will soon provide job seekers with exclusive access to training portals and career coaching services. Gail’s first book, Networking Karma was released earlier this year.