The 100 Day Challenge, Day 16:

Okay, the kids went back to school today- I had mixed feelings as we had a GREAT summer, but I am totally embracing getting to work in a more focused way.  I had many projects that I had put on hold in June, just tending to the highest priority items- taking good care of my current clients was at the top of the list.

So, today came and I was READY!  Networking meeting first thing, and then a long list of things to do, finish, start, re-start- whew! I was determined to get it all done today and just get rolling again!   It is now almost 5:00- I am feeling a little like I just ran a race today that I couldn’t possibly win!  Yes, I did accomplish quite a lot and I do feel like I got (somewhat) back on track, but what I am thinking about right now is that pacing yourself is always a good thing!  Especially when you are going into something big, having a SENSIBLE plan that pushes you just enough, but now over the overwhelming edge is SMART!  It’s like building your muscles again when they haven’t been used quite so strenuously in a while.  If you work them to exhaustion the first day, you may not be able to use them again for a week! Not to mention the pain.   Reaching goals takes steady perseverance.

While you are pacing yourself, take time to be nice to yourself, too.  While I was busy being frustrated by the small number of tasks that I crossed off my list, I was totally missing what I had accomplished.  Some of them were lengthy and had been put aside for a long time.   Take the time to acknowledge what you have done.

For tomorrow, I will make a smaller, more essential list to look at and work on- no I won’t throw away the longer list, but I will just put it out of sight.  I know that pacing myself tomorrow will make for a much more enjoyable day- and who wants to set themselves up for an unenjoyable day?  Not me!