You Have Permission

Do you ever want a lazy weekend? Do you feel that you can’t allow yourself to have one? It is not very often that my weekend isn’t jam packed with exercise classes, errands and preparing for the next week – I somehow feel guilty if I chose to just sit around. BUT, I gave myself permission this Saturday to make it a lazy day.

I had set my alarm like I do every night – set for 6:30 so I could get up and go to aqua aerobics; as usual the alarm rang and I turned it off to just lay in bed another 10 minutes – well those 10 minutes ended up being 30 and it was 7AM before I jumped out of bed. I still had intentions of going to aqua aerobics so I took my shower, put on my bathing suit and my sweat pants and turtle neck. Downstairs to make breakfast and I noticed that it was snowing – it was a light snow that had coated my car and the grass. It is at this time that I begin to wonder if I want to drive to the gym.

I know you are saying; "but, Toni it is a light coating no big deal"; except that in 1 inch of snow a few years ago I slid into a ditch in my neighborhood going down the various hills in the community. I decided that I would stay home and give myself a “day off”.

What is a “day off”? it is a day where there are no errands to be done, no reading or work to be done; basically, no deliverables either for myself, work or any of my family members. How did I pull that off? I am not sure.

A few weeks ago I had put together all my paperwork for my taxes including a spreadsheet that listed all my charitable contributions, the industry organizations I belong to; and, the costs incurred while searching for a job. Last week I put together my clothes for the next two weeks of work and earlier in the week I had done the laundry.

Since I daily keep up with the garbage, mail, dishes, etc. it wasn’t that I had anything major to do. I also reviewed what projects need to be done in the house and since last March I had the house painted, bought new living room furniture and later in the year had my bathroom re-grouted and sealed; I realized that there are no major house projects this year.

So I gave myself permission.

That permission let me leisurely read the three Saturday newspapers I receive, to watch the Saturday Today show. I read some chapters in “Tuesday Night Miracles” the latest book I am reading. I also watched several TV shows that I had DVR’d during the week and had not had a chance to see.

And, most importantly, I took a nap – it was only about 30 minutes but it was something I guess my body needed.

I don’t think that I had thought that the week was pretty stressful – it was all good and it was a great week; but, much is going on and what we will be doing will change the culture of our organization and transform the delivery of healthcare. We had presentations to our SVP and CTO and explained what we were doing – we also had a luncheon with our SVP where we learned more about the healthcare system and realized the importance of what we are doing. And although I was able to work from home three days last week I was on the phone until early evening.

So let me caution you – to have a great “day off” you need to have everything caught up in your life; otherwise, you will sit and ponder what you have to do. So,
1. Have your house in order the way you want it,
2. The bills paid, and
3. The garbage out.

Now put on those sweats, have a good book nearby and the remote control so that you can either watch a movie or those DVR’d shows, a comfortable pillow and a throw.

You have permission.