ACHIEVING A CAREER/LIFE BALANCEA. Have a Clear View of the Big Picture
1. Prioritize what is most important to you
2. Create a vision of how you want to live your life, and map out how you can achieve your goals. It differs for everyone, and you must be true to yourself.
3. Choose a life partner who shares your visions and goals.
4. Be prepared for the balance of your life, career, and family to shift depending upon external factors that are sometimes out of your control:
a. Health issues
b. Unexpected emergencies
c. Work deadlines
d. Family and friends’ needs or desires
e. Children
f. Aging parents
g. Relocation
5. Make a commitment to follow your personal goals and objectives, even
when it becomes a bumpy journey.
B. Cultivate the Right Attitude
1. Decide that you can and will create a balanced life.
2. Meeting management is a very demanding profession. You should be prepared for and anticipate challenges, but you must also be able to put things into perspective. If something goes wrong, you can either become anxious and frustrated, or concentrate on how to improve the situation.
3. Focus on solving the problem rather than casting blame; take responsibility for the remedy.
4. Treat everyone you deal with precisely how you want to be treated. The meetings and hospitality business is smaller than you think.
5. Don’t sweat the small stuff. That’s tough in the world of meetings, but with most small glitches that you simply cannot fix in time, you will be the only one who notices.
6. If you strive for excellence and not perfection, you minimize your daily frustrations.
7. Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.
8. Don’t depend upon others for your worth. Know your own value.
9. Count your blessings.
10. Accept family, friends, and colleagues for who they are, not who you want them to be.
11. Be flexible if things don’t work the way you want.
12. Apologize when you are wrong.
C. Take Control of Your Life
1. Remove toxic people from your life—those who drain your energy, are negative and pessimistic, and cause you to question your self-worth.
a. If you’re in your own business, consider firing a toxic client or shifting their account to a member of your staff who is better suited to handle them.
b. If your staff is draining your energy, consider team-building activities or brainstorming sessions that will improve productivity and morale.
c. If you are working in an unhealthy environment, update your resume and start seeking another position.
d. Don’t listen to naysayers; surround yourself with positive people who will cheer you on.
2. Invest in your own future.
a. Take educational courses that will help prepare you to reach your goals.
b. Get involved in industry associations, even if you have to pay the dues yourself.
c. Attend industry functions.
3. Network, Network, Network
a. Reach out to people who have lost their jobs; this is when they need you most. Not only will you get more than you give, you never know where they’ll end up.
b. Read the trade and consumer press and clip articles about people who could help your career or who want to develop a business relationship with. Send the articles to them for their reference in case they haven’t seen them, accompanied by a handwritten note.
c. Serve as a liaison and connect people who can help one another.
d. Never leave home without your business cards. You can make contacts in social settings.
e. Listen to people around you and become a problem-solver.
f. Airports and concierge lounges are great places to network. Also, consider upgrading to first class and sitting in an aisle seat on flights.
g. Write letters to the editor and participate in industry discussion groups.
h. Become conversant on current events, including sports; for example, know what “March Madness” is.
i. Develop meaningful relationships with people you trust who can share feelings with and use you as sounding boards.
j. Reward yourself for a job well done.
D. Refine Your Sense of Humor
1. Cultivate an ability and willingness to laugh at yourself.
2. Have one or two stress balls or toys handy to help you keep your perspective.
3. Find humor in situations that are out of your control.
E. Build a Support System
1. Cultivate business colleagues for a mutual-support system.
2. Organize your work so that someone can pick up where you left off.
3. Delegate tasks to subordinates or interns who can assist you.
4. Develop contingency plans for situations such as:
a. Children becoming ill.
b. The babysitter doesn’t show up.
c. You must work overtime.
d. Your spouse, partner, parent, or close friend needs assistance.
5. If you are an independent planner, seek out partners who share your values
and work ethic, and who you trust and could rely upon in an emergency.
6. Develop a business networking group with people who have similar
interests and concerns.
7. Make your own health a priority.
a. Exercise.
b. Eat balanced meals as often as possible.
c. Take mental-health days on occasion, not just sick days.
d. If you do not have enough reserve energy, you will not be able to sustain or assist anyone else.
F. Create a Positive Work Environment
1. Create a comfortable work area.
a. Remove clutter (allows you to focus on your work).
b. Have a comfortable chair (allows you to work for long periods
of time without physical discomfort).
c. Have good lighting (avoids eyestrain).
d. Create pleasant surroundings (sparks your creativity and revitalizes you.
1. posters
2. photographs
3. music
4. motivational sayings
5. pets (if working at home)
6. plants
e. Healthy snacks (provides energy boost).
2. Actively create a supportive work environment with your colleagues.
3. Express your appreciation to those who have contributed to your success.
4. Organize your workspace for functionality.
G. Motivational Quotes
“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.”
-Christopher Reeve, actor and speaker
“It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task which, more than anything else, will affect its successful outcome.”
-William James, psychologist, professor, author
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
-Maya Angelou, writer
“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.”
-Thomas Jefferson, third President of the U.S.
“There are two big forces at work: external and internal. We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness, and pain. What really matters is the internal force. How do I respond to those disasters? Over that, I have complete control.”
-Leo Buscaglia, author and speaker
“When we do the best that we can, we never know what miracle is wrought in our life, or in the life of another.”
-Helen Keller, author and lecturer
“A person cannot directly choose his circumstances, but he can choose his thoughts, and so indirectly, yet surely, shape his circumstances.”
-James Allen, author of “As A Man Thinketh”
“Learn to enjoy every minute of your life. Be happy now. Don’t wait for something outside of yourself to make you happy in the future, Think how really precious is the time you have to spend, whether it’s at work or with your family. Every minute should be enjoyed and savored.”
-Earl Nightingale, radio announcer, author, and speaker
Thanks to Bonnie Wallsh, CMP, CMM, Chief Strategist, Bonnie Wallsh Associates, LLC, a meetings management and consulting firm based in Charlotte, NC. She can be reached via email at [email protected] or by telephone at
(704) 491 0921.