Taking A Break

The Everyday Manager is taking a quick break while I attend the Magma Short Film Festival.

(Image: The Six Dollar Fifty Man)

I will start posting again shortly.  Catch you again Friday 30th April (blogspot time).

Mental Agility

One important aspect of every persons career is retaining the ability to adapt and to learn new skills as quickly as they can.

Here are a few ideas to keep you mentally agile and flexible -

1. Study another language. This will really test you at any stage of life! Learning another language will cover more areas of your brain than traditional brain teasers as it requires both creativity and memory work.


2. Exercise with cardio. Doing intense exercise gets the lungs working harder and the blood flowing faster. More oxygen in the lungs being transported around your body can only have a positive effect on your brain.


3. Eat and drink smarter - Omega 3's power the brain. The best places to find these are in fish particularly salmon. Otherwise take a supplement.


4. Relax your brain. When the pressure is off and your not at work, learn to take it easy. his applies both to your brain fitness as well as your physical fitness. You need to do the training but you also need to rest to reap the full benefits.

(See also - Australian Mens Health, February 2010.)

"Learn to adjust yourself to the conditions you have to endure, but make a point of trying to alter or correct conditions so that they are most favorable to you." William Frederick Book.

Take a Break

An important part of managing is knowing and understanding your energy cycles. Energy cycles are governed by what you eat and the amount of rest you have.

Here are a few tips to help you through the year -

1. Keep a diary. Keep a hourly record of your energy levels over a fortnight and map the trends. What time's were you full of energy and ready to go? What time's were you on a low and needed a boost?


2. Plan your year. When you put together your annual leave plan make sure you take breaks right across the year and most importantly when you will need them. Aim to have a few spare days up your sleeve for those days when you just can't face another day at work.


3. Eat right. Your energy levels will rise and fall based on your diet and fitness levels. If you eat right then your food should provide a constant amount of fuel throughout the day to enable to be balanced.
   
   
4. Take breaks. You might feel like you are accomplishing more by skipping your coffee break but you may actually be achieving less. Take your regulated breaks when you can. If you are busy - reschedule your break for a better time - but don't skip it! Your body and brain's need to take a break. Then when you come back to the task you wil feel more fresh and you will be able to apply yourself better to it.

Taking time off and not being in the office is just as if not more important as being there!

Rest

Does living with the knowledge that salvation is secure remove or lower the responsibility of the believer in regards to their behavior?

Romans 7 and 8 clearly deals with this issue. Paul states emphatically - no.

BUT - the believer must also be able to live in 'the rest'. It doesn't have to be hard!

This is the area where I always struggled, and often this brought on bouts of depression and made my failings into a viscous circle.

I now am at rest and am peaceful about my life. I am not struggling with bad feelings or constantly keeping an eye out for the judge. Neither do I spend each day wondering amourous thoughts about God. I am just not that kind of person.

What I do do is - live my life. What else is there? Take it easy, kicj back and enjoy life - because that is what it is for.

If life is one constant drama and you keep jumping from one batllefield to another - whats te point? Chill out, read the bible as it is written, and just rest.