It’s that time of year again where you find yourself in the hustle and bustle of the season. You’ve got that list of gifts to buy for family, friends, and colleagues, plus the addition of a few coffee and lunch dates with friends who might be in the area. It’s no secret that this time of the year is a busy period for many people. The question however, is “How do you find time to complete your to-do list without burning yourself out?” See my plan below. I highly recommend you make a plan that has some of the same qualities as mine.My plan for this holiday season is to toss out the to-do list, to not wake to an alarm, and enjoy lunch with friends I don’t see all the time. I’ve had a successful year both professionally and personally.
As a student affairs professional I know it’s hard to sit back and truly relax. I get it. The word burnout is a buzzword in our community for a reason. Every day I’ll have to fight my work-hard personality and remind it to sit back and take a break. I recently read a blog post on SAS Confidential, by Raul Pancheco-Vega titled “Redefining ‘Success’ on Self-Care, Balance, and Overwork in Academia.” Raul touches on how our jobs are 24-7 and dives into the importance of taking a break. He uses his own experience to point out why taking time for ourselves is so important. Raul says, “No human being is capable of sustaining this amount of pressure for an extended period of time.” I think we can all agree that our field is demanding, and it’s important we spend time not working.
Give yourself some time to rest and do things that make you smile. Let’s spend this time focusing on ourselves so we can give much more to our students come 2016.
So, friends, drop your comments below. What’s the one thing you plan on doing during this holiday season that focuses on you?
> BONUS <
Podcast With DT Henry on Academic Advising First-Year Student Athletes
