Oh my goodness. When I compare this time of year to last year, it’s like two different lifetimes. Last year, I was watching all the things that make Chicago a great city get canceled. There were no street fairs and no concerts and no art fairs. Even the beaches were closed all summer!
As much of an introvert as I am, this was too much even for me.
During stay at home, my professional life didn’t change much. I have always worked with my clients remotely. My speaking gigs went to Zoom from in person, which I was totally fine with. (No travel or car rental? Sign me up!)
However, I had no way to recharge my battery and depleted energy. I couldn’t go to my local spots and see my favorite musicians. I sunk into a bit of a funk, to be honest.
Let’s contrast that with now. Chicago’s COVID-19 numbers are good, many people are fully vaccinated, and all restrictions will be lifted next week. (I have some concerns about this…)
The last two weekends I went tango dancing for the first time in 15 months. I am pleased to share that I did pretty well, all things considered. My pandemic online Zumba classes really paid off!
And with festivals and concerts and everything coming back, I would LOVE to spend the summer bopping around in a sangria-fueled haze.
I will certainly do some of that, but I am also going to be knuckling down, because I am essentially working three jobs at the moment. I have my own career transition coaching practice, I am the editor of this blog, and I am writing a book.
The book thing is really big and all my negative self-talk has pumped up its volume. Who am I to be doing this? Who the heck are you to write a book? What were you thinking? Nobody is going to read it! There are a million books out there written by people who are better qualified.
Sigh.
I found myself in the fetal position on my couch in silence listening to the air conditioner for hours this weekend. And then I kicked my own butt and chipped away at a few sections of my book.
And then I put on a fancy dress and treated myself to some tango dancing with a dear friend I haven’t seen since 2019.
Friends keep asking me to do things and don’t understand why I can’t come out and play. I can play, but at specific times, and around the time constraints of my three “jobs.”
But you know what? I WISH I could slack off this summer.
In previous years, I cleared my calendar during this time, which is usually pretty slow for me, and went out 4-5 nights a week.
But I have other things to do this summer.
For one, I need to fill up my coaching practice. Four clients have gotten job offers within the last four weeks, which means I have spaces for my 1:1 coaching and my coaching group. The job market is great and I want people who are looking for work to stay focused on their job search and get back to work.
So, I am back to work-life allocation, because I think work-life balance doesn’t exist, especially for entrepreneurs.
I can have some fun, but I’ll need to get hands-on with my calendar and keep my eyes on the prize – having my book draft mostly done by Labor Day.
Wish me luck!
