Slacker isn't a good word

Slacker isn't a good word for why I haven't been on this blog. I'm always busy and so that isn't an excuse. But, I've honestly forgotten about it. Trying to work full-time and be a part-time entrepreneur has left little room for some things...if only because the task doesn't come to the forefront of my mind.

So, what have I been doing while off this blog. Hmmm. Perhaps a couple of bullets will do:

• Dealing with furlough - yep, I've been furloughed. So, I have 11 fewer days of pay and ....in theory there are 11 fewer days of work. Except that isn't how it has gone. It has wreaked a bit of havoc on the job. We produce a lot of products and so all the schedules are all out of sync and it is creating more work.
• Taking my body back - lots of things have happened this year with health - stress, losses, scares, etc. This summer I've been diligent at swimming my laps at least twice a week and that has been wonderful amongst all the stress.
• Entrepreneurship - I've always wanted to be one, but with full-time work it is very difficult, But, http://www.nudgevillage.com is my website and I've got a few free courses on other sites that have over 500 students taking them! Pretty cool. I've paid a few coaches to teach me a few marketing principles and am finding that I know a lot about marketing. Just need to focus on what my product is, but ....hard to think on things when so much else going on.
• Moving on - time for a change. I've lived in the same place for almost 10 years and in the same area of the country for over 15 years! We'll see what happens. Maybe just a move to a different place. Who knows. Will keep you posted!
• Work - did I reference this above? Yes. It's been quite the year at work. I'm actually the "right hand woman" to a Dean that is setting up a new college in our organization. It is millions of dollars in projects and I get the joy of managing them. There have been many struggles along the way, but in the end I will be a more talented and marketable person, right? Seriously though - major lessons in leadership, management, culture, change, treating people well, risk, etc.
• Most importantly - the family - I'm trying to make time to see family amongst it all because the years are flying by. A few trips across country and even nearby. Family and friends are what it is all about, right? I'm putting my money where my mouth is and taking that time.

So, there it is - a bulleted list of what I should expound upon a bit more and with specific lessons learned and sharing. It does lack a bit of heart, but starting back into this Blogger space slowly.

Now, time to go read your blogs! It's been a while!

Overwhelmed and Overworked

It feels like forever since I've blogged. In some ways, I forgot that I had all of these blogs. Unfortunately, that isn't a good thing since I'm someone that has to write stuff down to decompress.

Right now it is 4:30 a.m.

I cannot sleep.

I have about 6-7 pages of "to dos" from work that I haven't been able to get to for two weeks. Partially, because I took care of my sister's six kids for a few days and partially because I'm experiencing "meeting mania." Literately, I've had about five meetings a day and I've had to lead most of them. So, it's hard to multi-task when you are engaged in leading a meeting.

Yesterday was the last straw. My first meeting was at 8:00 a.m. (which I arrived late to because traffic was bad and it took me 1.5 hours to get to work) and the last ended at 6:00 p.m. The two prior days were filled with meetings as well. All the energy is being sucked from me!

It wouldn't bug me, but I had just worked 20 hours the prior weekend to get through about 700 emails and different projects only to find myself overwhelmed again.

Really, right now is the perfect storm. I'm training two production managers, trying to lead a new contract that has tons of important initiatives attached to it and trying to pass along old responsibilities while gathering an entire slew of new responsibilities under my belt.

Why? Why am I doing this?

Right now I have to in order to move forward, get the salary increases, etc.

However, and this is a big however, I cannot sustain this way of living. What bothers me most is that I haven't had that time to think, ponder, and get inspiration. I must be in bionic mode all day and make split second decisions for people to move forward on implementing new processes, systems, partnerships, etc.

That being said, I am grateful. Grateful that I have a good job that is stable. Grateful that I'm entrusted with this responsibility. Grateful that I'm growing my talents.

Now it's 4:46 a.m. and I've got plenty of time to get ahead of the game. Plus, I get to be at home most of the day today and so I might even be able to have some laundry going on in the background and get a few minutes in on the treadmill.

So, I'm going to get off this blog and get to work.