“As you get older,
time speeds up,
but life slows down”

― John C. Maxwell

The summer months are passing quickly. Time seems to do that. My parents always shared that time seems to speed up as you age. I am experiencing that phenomenon.

• Are you?

I try not to become anxious about how quickly the days, weeks, and months pass. Some of them seem like a blur. Certainly, the months during the first year of the pandemic melted together. I must be very intentional when I think about the chronological timing of things during the past four years.

This summer, I am having difficulty recognizing what day of the week it is. I am not worried about memory loss. It is more about each day being full, me being busy, and how the way we work and live is so blended that it is hard to differentiate.

• Is anyone else experiencing this?

My choice to be self-employed and a business owner is very much a lifestyle. It is one you must master, or it will bring you down. You never really separate from the responsibilities of the company. However, if you don’t find the balance between work and play, living and working, it will shorten your life and endanger all your relationships.

I have found the balance. Yet, the pandemic ‘upset the apple cart’ somewhat. Now that I work from my home and visit my clients, there doesn’t seem to be a clear demarcation between work responsibilities and home responsibilities – they all get jumbled together.

I appreciate being able to manage the laundry, dogs, and other household responsibilities while I work at the dining room table or upstairs office. Having a cell phone means that both my work and life can go anywhere with me. I can even take a work call while relaxing in the hammock.

Though this should contribute to more getting done (it does) and maybe things blending in a good way, I am feeling a difference.

Historically, vacation meant that you tuned out on work and tuned into yourself and family — I haven’t had the opportunity to do that this summer.

• Have you?

I never really tune out work. I just find blocks of time to dedicate to my work and to my life. I do have some boundaries that serve me well, and so do the dogs!

Our morning time (5 a.m. – 7:30 a.m.) is for us. Same goes for the evening. Once the last appointment is completed and calls finished, the dinner hour and beyond are ‘me’ time and time to connect deeply with the dog pack. They require my full attention to keep the power dynamics harmonious and our connection tight. It is not unlike the nurturing that our relationships with coworkers and direct reports need.

• When do you find time for yourself?

• What is essential that you do every day to maintain your well-being?

• Is it different in the summer months?

I love the grade school assignment we were given to write about ‘What I did this summer.’

• How have you used the long days and warmer weather for yourself, your family, you working relationships?

• Is the cadence different?

My summer plans were thrown out the window with the unplanned pregnancy of one of my French Bulldog pups. You may be tired of my focus on dogs and puppies, but it is an experience that changes your entire perspective.

I am not so affected by everything in the news because when I enter the whelping room, everything melts away, and the priority is very clear and compelling.

• Do you need to upend your routines with something unplanned?

• Do you need a puppy?

Leslie

“Life is what happens
while you are busy
making other plans.”

— John Lennon