One of my top personality traits is achiever. According to the Strengthsfinder theory, for achievers, every day starts out at zero, including weekends and holidays. After working for about 16 days straight (not working Memorial Day and last Saturday), I enjoyed taking this past Wednesday through Friday off.
For an achiever this meant taking the car for repairs and an oil change, and sorting through paperwork and laundry that had grown at home over the past three weeks.
A few fun things reminded me about what is renewing and wonderful about life: completing a four-mile hike followed by the deliciousness of a drink of water, eating out with friends and taking time to connect with people I met as I ran errands.
One of my favorite things to do is to walk up to a checkout and think: "I've never met this person before, but before I leave I'm going to make them laugh." This is fun for me because customers are rushing, multitasking or late to another appointment, in the same mindset as I used to be when I worked for a temp agency and was rushing to secretarial jobs in downtown LA during college. Right away a twinkle in the eye, making eye contact changes the dynamics in the brief meeting over the cash register. In future posts I'll write about times I've made someone laugh. When I've been determined to make it happen, I can't remember a time it hasn't worked.
The most important thing I remembered over this long weekend is advice for achievers I once came across: achievers must schedule in casual time just as diligently as they schedule work, or work will be all they accomplish.
For achievers, there's no such thing as an overachiever, and planning for work life balance can create a full life.
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