The Falsehood of Overwork

We currently live in a society where we’re OBSESSED with being overworked. We wear it like a badge of honor. I’ve had close friends in various programs such as veterinary school or law school competing about who has it “worse”. Who is more tired? More exhausted? Putting in more hours? Who has a bigger work load? Who is putting in the most hours? Oh you worked 12 hours today! I’m on my 12th day of 15 hour shifts… TAKE THAT!

We take this obsession with overwork and bring it into every area of our lives. Yoga and dance are seen by people as being for the “weak”. We’ve developed military style workouts – “boot camp” – and managed to convince people that they need these in order to be healthy. Instead of focusing on making people enjoy what they’re doing when they manage to find a few hours in their days to focus on self-care… we’re basically making people beat themselves to a pulp and hate every second of it. More misery? MORE POWER!

Moms are competing as to who has it worse every day. Arguing over whose husband is messiest, or how much harder it is to be a stay at home mom, or vice versa.

So you go from over worked in the office, to doing unnecessarily intense workouts, to arguing with your friends during your down time over how awful your husband is.

Why the actual F*CK are we competing for who has it worse? Why are we so excited to be bragging about things we should be complaining about?

Any one who has been at all looped into the science coming out of exercise studies will tell you that there is no dramatic difference to your health if you workout just enough to get your heart rate into the aerobic zone for 30 minutes a day, versus being ready to throw up at the end of your workout. I’m willing to bet theres quite a difference when it comes to your mental sanity.

We can expand this to nearly every single facet of our lives.

Instead of focusing on all the ways we’re miserable in our lives, and making every aspect of our lives a competition for being more over worked than the person next to us. Why don’t we step back and realize that none of these things are making us fulfilled.

That’s a word we don’t talk about enough. Fulfillment.

How many of the things you’re doing in your life are actually making you feel fulfilled? How much of your lifestyle is actually feeding your soul?

 

Stand Tall in Integrity

There is immense power in standing in Integrity even when no one is watching. There’s power in doing the “right” thing.
I’m putting “right” into quotations because so many people don’t understand what this means, and it usually seems clear to me. So let me clarify: there is POWER in doing what is BEST for people around you, even if that’s not necessarily what seems best in the moment for yourself.

My examples regarding this stem from so many of my own experiences. I currently do 3 things for income: I’m a Certified Financial Planner(TM) Professional, I’m a network marketer, and I’m a yoga instructor. I have a lot going on, and for better or worse, in all my income producing activities, I regularly encounter those that I consider to be doing certain things at a lower than optimal Integrity level.

Being in finance for the last 8 years and having worked at a large brokerage firm, I often encountered people who are clearly not serving the interests of their clients. There are so many investment products out there and so many advisors who are pushing those products that have higher commission, rather than products that a client actually needs or would be cheaper for the client. Don’t even let me get started on Life Insurance and Annuities! There’s no product that’s the best solution ever on the face of the earth for all 7 billion people who live on it! 

Maybe I take this Integrity thing too seriously, but honestly, I’d rather do right by the client and their family than line my own pockets. I even go as far as telling people when it makes sense and doesn’t make sense to spend the money on a financial planner! 

You may be sitting there and saying “this girl really sends people away instead of collecting fees from them?”

Yes, yes I do. 
Because I’d rather you come back to me when it makes sense for us to work together than waste money you don’t even have. I wholly believe that people want to work with honest people.

Don’t be afraid to stand in Integrity. Even when it’s hard, because it will pay off in the long run! 

That Good Juju

Often times we hear people speak about spreading good energy or karma or my the new favorite thing: “good vibes only”. But what does that even mean?

Does it count as good vibes if you’re wishing people the best but are secretly jealous of their success? Or if you’re not jealous but you’re generating negative self-talk in your head as a result of their success?

Good vibes can’t come from people who have bad energy, especially bad energy towards themselves. If you’re constantly talking harshly to yourself, secretly judging people behind their backs, or just being incongruent with the face you’re showing others and the true face that is YOU… you’re not spreading good vibes.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting you should be negative towards people. What I’m suggesting is that you monitor the energy within you because that’s the real energy that you show to the world. Energy healers call this your “aura”, it is the true energy flowing within you that can become discolored or muddy when there’s blockages in your energy centers.

The key to spreading that good Juju everywhere you go? Start with yourself first!