Many of us are returning to work today or tomorrow after some vacation time. We’re probably also facing a horrendous number of e-mails, voicemails and a stack of work to start right away, despite still having “vacation brain.”
Simultaneously, you may ask if the vacation was really worth it. But not me. The vacation is always worth it. Let me tell you why and it might help your Monday go a bit smoother.
“When I was Executive Director of The Green Mountain Club, we were fortunate to have Michelle Barber working as one of our information specialists in the Visitor Center. In my experience, Michelle is friendly, bright, professional, and reliable. I recommend her as a creative, positive person who is a student of organizations, offers constructive ideas, and is a great person to have around!”
Ben Rose
Executive Director (1998-2011)
Green Mountain Club
Please read the recommendation I enthusiastically offered Ben on LinkedIn.
Learn more about the marketing I do for nonprofits and universities.
I’m an advocate for time blocking: making appointments with yourself to work on a task. However, I’ve used the tactic mostly as a productivity (reactionary) tool. I like this video from Fast Company because it advocates for carving out non-reactionary windows of time for things “you want to make an impact in over the long-term.”
In a month when my “To Do” list seems to experience a growth spurt, I needed a book that would help ease and focus my mind. October, I’m learning, is an overwhelming mix of events, deadlines, anxieties and exhaustion at the end of a particular work cycle. Less: Accomplishing More By Doing Less, with it’s soothing green cover and simple table of contents, seemed to promise a light at the end of the tunnel.
Marc Lesser, author of Less and Z.B.A – Zen of Business Administration: How Zen Practice Can Transform Your Work and Your Life, is a Zen teacher with an MBA. I certainly thought I could learn a few things from this guy!
Right now, my favorite life and career resource is Creating a Life Worth Living by Carol Lloyd. The subtitle is “A practical course in career design for artists, innovators, and others aspiring to a creative life” and does not short shrift those of us who can’t master watercolors or work up the nerve for live performance art, but who nonetheless identify as creative.
Fast Company magazine suggests enlisting a celebrity spokesperson for your charitable cause. The article offers valuable and interesting advice…if you have a multi-million dollar budget and friends in high places. That isn’t to say small non-profits don’t have friends in high places, but if you’re feeling awfully far from Hollywood, consider local celebrities.
