Work-Home Balance and Lunch

JWil — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 00:55:49 +0000

I started pushing my lunches later and later about four or five years ago. The theory was that the afternoon would seem shorter and 5 o’clock would come sooner. Now that I am in a new job, one I actually like, I am still eating lunch later but for completely different reasons. I am enjoying what I am doing so much that I lose track of time and before I know it, its 1 o’clock. But this brings up the flip side, the afternoon seems shorter. So the day is already flying by in the morning so much that I don’t realize it’s lunch, and then once I finish lunch the day is pretty much gone, and before I blink it’s 5.

Normally this would be a good thing. But since as previously mentioned I do like my job, I am inclined to stay at work longer. It goes like this, “5 o’clock already? Well, just one more thing and then I’ll go home.” And one more thing turns into 3 and then its 5:30, the time I’m supposed to be home.
It comes back to the whole work/home balance and where one’s priorities are.

For me, my priorities are whatever I happen to be doing at the moment. While I’m at work I want to be and stay at work, but when I go home, all I want to do is be with my daughter and be a good mom. Am I a bad parent for enjoying my work? I provide a great lifestyle for my family by working, but I’m positive my daughter wouldn’t know the difference if we lived in a smaller house or she wore second-hand clothes. I feel like a good mother by giving her these things. And if I get a sense of fulfillment from it too then it’s a double bonus.

So I have decided to eat lunch at 11:45 instead. This started because once I skimped on dinner the night before and only had carbs for breakfast so I was feeling the headache and lightheadedness that tell me it’s time to eat really early. I caved and ate lunch around 11:40. It made it seem like I had oodles of time in the afternoon and I was ready to go home right around 5. It’s all head games anyway right?

Finding the Silver Lining

JWil — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 03:37:13 +0000

Being out of work has been a blessing in disguise for me. I have done quite a bit of work on self-discovery, something I wouldn’t have ever had time for previously. One of my favorite blogs is The Happiness Project, I subscribe to via RSS. They recently had a blog post listing ways to feel happy when you lost your job. My husband and I are working on clearing our clutter. This again is something I wouldn’t have time for if I were working. It feels so good to have a clean and decluttered house. I feel like I can get more done. There seems to be less stress too.

But mostly I am focusing on remembering what I do have, not what I don’t. I have an amazing daughter who grows smarter everyday, a beautiful home, a loving husband, parents close by, fuzzy cats, plenty of food to eat, and a soft bed to sleep in. And more and more I am thankful that I have had this time off to be with my daughter, play with her, and watch her grow. I am happy that I have learned more about myself and am better prepared to interview for my dream job.

In my opinion it is important to find the positive side of a situation if possible. It will cause less stress and make you happier. And enjoying life is a great goal, don’t you think? What makes you happy?

» Balance

Work-Home Balance and Lunch

Finding the Silver Lining