better business blog

Tips and stories to add value to you and your organisation

Our Happy Valentines Modern Career

12 February 2012

It would seem that poor old Valentine is having to do a full week of work this year as people extend V-day into a week of loving celebration and generally lovin’ it up. And there is nothing wrong with that – if you love someone and can’t tell them this week, in the face or massive commercial prodding, then maybe you have a problem. However, as well of thinking about others, we also need to think about ourselves and the work we do.

In our Modern Career we might have several job changes, work for a variety of organisations and/or have several mini-careers that follow each other like a crocodile of happy children all holding hands.

If we love our work then life is sweet and the days speed by. If we don’t, then life is a prison sentence and we spend 40 to 60 hours a week locked up longing for escape.

I love what I do and enjoy the helter-skelter imbalance of coaching sessions, training work, being writer-Rich and being radio-Rich. It wasn’t always like that and I hated my first few jobs and struggled with work for many years …until I learned to love myself and to do work that I love.

Rather than focusing on where we are now, as we’re already here, let’s wind forward to next year …and ask ourselves:

1) What am I going to be doing this time in 2013?

2) What am I going to do maintain the love I already have, or to find something new to love?

In this week of Valentines we can learn to love ourselves and to recognise that we’re super people who work hard and can enjoy a great modern career. As for me, I shall be loving an Eccles cake on Tuesday. Mmmm …cake! I love that too!

Tags: cake, love, Valentine

Valentine’s Day – Love Yourself This Year

13 February 2011

Once a year it seems that the whole world goes pink and fluffy in pursuit of passion, romance and at the very least, a happy home life.

People rush out and buy cards, cuddly toys and little love tokens. They book tables in restaurants, wear their brightest smiles, or bag the back row at their local cinema, for ninety minutes of Hollywood flavoured hugs.

They do all of this to celebrate the person they’re with, encouraged onwards by saccharine advertisements pushing perfume that will instantly transform us (with just one tiny puff) into either a bronzed hunk with a surfboard, or an elegant beauty sashaying our way into the Ritz.

Valentine’s day is clearly a commercial enterprise and yet it’s always fun to get a card, or a message, or to use the day as an opportunity to go out to dinner with someone special.

However…

We also need to love ourselves.

It’s fun to treat other people and it’s also really healthy and satisfying to treat ourselves too.

We all work hard, rob sleep to look after children, or rush off to work without a decent breakfast inside us. We all spend time thinking about the needs of others and can forget to put ourselves first.

This year I’d like to invite you to think about yourself and do one thing to say; ‘well done me, I’m lovely.’

You might choose to:

• Buy a treat at break time.
• Give yourself a quiet 30 minutes, to read a book perhaps, or just snooze.
• Have a second glass of sherry (is one ever enough?)
• Download some music for your iPod.
• Subscribe to a hobby or news magazine (this is a great way to have something interesting arrive in the post every month).
• Pamper yourself with a (you can fill in the blank here).
• Come home early from work.
• Indulge in your favourite pastime.
• Buy yourself something pink, fluffy or sparkly.

The choice is endless and the choice is yours. You can also take a minute to enjoy our special Valentine’s Day Video (feat Brian) which joins the other mini-masterpieces on the Tube of You. Brian’s great to work with; he always hits his marks and never fluffs a line. A real pro.

So, this year do keep yourself in your partner’s good books…and also do something for yourself too. Because:

You’re worth it.

By the way…I’m always interested in comments…so please share with us what you will being doing to be kind to yourself…

Tags: Brian, heart, love, Valentine, Valentine's Day