"I think that Build the Life You Want and Still Have Time to Enjoy It! would make a great gift for someone that you know who is overwhelmed by having a lack of time. It is also a great gift to give to oneself."

Are New Year’s Resolution Reeking Havoc on Your Health?

This Year—Make a New Resolution: No Resolutions!

When New Year’s rolls around, we are always tempted to reinvent ourselves. This year we will finally get our time and lives under control! However sweeping change is rarely the answer because it is not sustainable. In fact, it usually becomes one more nagging item on your to do list breeding guilt and additional stress that we are not able to live up to our resolutions.

Consider that it takes 30 days to build a habit. And, one change is usually all a person can integrate into their lives at a time. This year, rather than sweeping change, time management expert Jim Claitor suggests just picking one small change that will make a big impact and making it a non negotiable on your to do list for one month.

What is the hot topic driving change this year? Stress in creating work life balance: “The need for both men and women to balance obligations between work and family.”

• Up to 9 out of 10 visits to primary care physicians are for stress related problems
• Job stress is more strongly associated with health complaints than financial or family problems.
• Depression, only one type of stress reaction, is predicted to be the leading occupational disease of the 21st century, responsible for more days lost than any other single factor.

Here’s some questions you can ask in order to decide what would be the most useful thing for you to pick to work on first.

• What is your top priority and what percentage of your time does it absorb?
• What causes you the most stress?
• What do people comment to you on the most? Are you always on the phone? Frequently late? Stressed?
• What is the one area of your life you would like to spend more time on?
• What area of your life would you like to spend less time on?
• What keeps you up at night?
• I wish I could get my arms around...

From someone who made it work:
A mom who had a difficult consulting job shared that she was constantly concerned she wasn’t getting quality time with her kids. They were always on their way somewhere. The guilt about being a bad mom coupled with the anxiety about putting limits on work was eating at her night and day and she began to feel impacts in her health—headaches, stomach aches and a lack of sleep. She decided to make one small change and stick with it for a month. 3 days a week she made sure sat down and had breakfast with her kids. and did not allow interruptions..  She noted 2 big impacts from this very small change. First, she felt better having had breakfast and more over those days she felt she felt she had really had good quality time with her kids before they started the hustle and bustle of the day.

In picking your New Year’s resolution it is key to --Be Good to Yourself! You Matter! If you are not there, you will be missed. This small change alone may make all the difference.