A Very Close Call
by Maria Gracia
Steve is a stock broker, working on Wall Street. He catches
the subway at 7:00a each morning and works a full and
stressful day, trading for his clients.
After the stock market closes for the day, he goes to his
office and continues working . . . researching, handling
paperwork, catching up on reading and making his phone
calls.
Instead of breaking for a healthy lunch or dinner, he
usually just grabs a high-fat, fast-food meal.
He finally catches the 9:00p train home. He rarely has
enough energy to greet his family when he arrives, never
mind spending any quality time with them. There are even
many weekends that Steve insists on working.
Then, it happened.
Steve's wife received a call and learned that Steve was in
the hospital.
He had a heart attack. He was only 47 years old.
Steve was lucky enough to have survived. His doctor
instructed him that he had to take it easy. He had to get
lots of rest and relaxation. He had to stay home from work
for six to eight weeks. He had to exercise. He had to eat
better. He had to slow down.
Less than two weeks had gone by, when Steve decided he was
well enough to go back to work.
Against the advice of his doctor and to the dismay of his
family, Steve's hours at work were stretched even longer.
He had so much work to catch up on, since he was in the
hospital for the past 11 days.
Two weeks later, Steve was back in the hospital again. He
had another heart attack.
Once again, he was miraculously lucky enough to survive.
His doctor inquired, "Steve, why would you return to work
in such a short time, when I clearly recommended --
insisted -- that you first have sufficient rest? Why would
you go to work, continue with your long hours and remain on
your unhealthy diet? Didn't you learn anything from your
first heart attack?"
Steve replied, "Doctor, I don't have time to be sick. I
can't waste time being laid up in the hospital."
How sad. Steve survived two heart attacks, but how much
longer could his luck continue? Steve had no sense of
balance in his life. He was spending 95% of his time
working and not taking care of himself. The scale was
tipped too heavy on one side. After his second heart attack
though, Steve finally evaluated the amount of energy and
stress that was being caused by overwork. He now uses his
time more effectively and is living a more healthy,
balanced and happy life.
Time management is not about working harder. It's the art
of balancing the time in your life between the things that
matter most. Work may be important . . . but what's the
sense of making lots of money if you're not going to be
around for you and your family to enjoy it. After all,
nobody wants their tombstone to read, "If only I could have
spent a few more hours at work."
Let's think about some of the important things in life that
should get a percentage of your time . . . health, family,
friends, work, rest, relaxation, entertainment, good
nutrition, exercise, goals . . .
Giving 95% of your time to work, and only giving 5% of your
time for everything else, is not a healthy balance for you,
or your family. Why not spend a moment right now to
determine how balanced your time is. Take an honest
evaluation of yourself. Then: Make sure you allocate
sufficient time to the important things in your life.
Spend time with your family and friends. They need you and
want you around.
Your work is important, but it should never have a higher
priority than your health.
Don't compromise a healthy diet with quick fast-food meals.
Exercise. Get plenty of rest.
Take time each day to have some fun. Watch a favorite
program. Play golf. Read to your child.
Don't forget about setting goals. And make time to achieve
them.
You only have one life--live it to the fullest.
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by Maria Gracia - Get Organized Now!
http://www.getorganizednow.comFREE Idea-Pak and E-zine filled with tips, ideas,
articles and more to help you organize your home,
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