Many people love to throw themselves into their work but it can also be important for them to recognise any warning signs. They can then understand and act on these signs.
Imagine that you want to follow elements of this approach in your own way. This can involve focusing on the following themes.
You Can Recognise
The Warning Signs
Different people get different warning signs. They may get headaches, forget appointments, neglect their family, feel exhausted or have other symptoms.
Some people recognise and act on these warning signs. Some try to ignore or numb themselves to such signs. One person explained their symptoms in the following way.
“Every Friday night I got a splitting headache in my left temple. Despite working hard during the week – and feeling tired – I only get the headache when driving home on Friday.
“Visiting an osteopath to deal with another problem, I asked about the headaches. She found a tight nerve in my right shoulder, which was where the pressure was located.
“She taught me how to massage the muscle, which eased the stress, but also taught me to recognise the symptoms earlier.
“I have always been duty driven. Sometimes it feels like I am responsible for taking care of my family, my team and my mother.
“Without getting into fluffy territory, I decided to take some time for myself and not carry the world on my shoulders.
“That meant saying ‘Yes,’ to some things and ‘No’ to others. Now I have been free from headaches for the past 2 years.”
Do you ever get warning signs? These can take different forms. Here are some things that people have mentioned regarding such signs.
“I take on too much, feel tired and forget things. I once double-booked myself for appointments in Sheffield and Singapore on the same day.”
“I lose my temper for no apparent reason. This can lead to me lashing out and hurting my loved ones.”
“Sometimes I feel empty, lack purpose and begin to drift. This is unlike me, because I am usually extremely decisive.”
Looking at your own life, what are the warning signs you may get? How do you try to take heed of the warning signs? What happens if you do not take heed of these signs?
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
You Can Understand
The Warning Signs
What may be the reasons for any warning signs? You may feel out of control, have little time to rest, be in an unsatisfying job, be surrounded by negative people or need a new sense of purpose.
The reasons can be physical, psychological or a mixture of both. Sometimes the reasons may be deep seated, sometimes they can be more obvious. Let’s look at one example of the latter.
A star footballer had a good disciplinary record but then he got himself sent off twice in a month. Nobody could understand why. He was always the first to training, the last to leave and would do anything for the team.
The answer lay in front of our eyes. Over the past month he had been asked to play out of position and felt extremely uncomfortable. He explained this in the following way.
“My head is in a whirl because I strain to remember the manager’s instructions. That isn’t the case when I’m playing in my natural position, because then I don’t have to think and I enjoy the game.
“Now I get confused trying to remember the instructions. This leads to me making mistakes, getting upset and sometimes arguing with the referee. I’m counting the games to returning to my best position.”
The player’s problem was solvable. Learning a technique for managing his anger, he volunteered to play one more game out of position. Strangely, because he now recognised what upset him, he had a storming game. He was then grateful to return to his natural role on the field.
Let’s return to your own life and work. When do you get warning signs? What may be the reasons for these? Are you doing things that give you positive energy? Are you doing things that give you negative energy?
How much do you feel in control of shaping your future? Rate this on a scale 0-10. Anything less than 7/10 can lead to having symptoms. Whilst is can vital to manage these, it can also be good to look at the bigger picture.
How can you begin to feel more in control of your diary, your life and your work? You may not be able to change everything straight away, but it can be useful to take small steps and get successes.
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
You Can Act On
The Warning Signs
Imagine that you have had warning signs. Sometimes these can be resolved by making relatively simple adjustments. These may involve eating healthier food, exercising or doing things that give you positive energy.
Sometimes these may call for bigger adjustments. These may involve spending time with positive people rather than negative people, finding a more satisfying job or developing a new sense of purpose.
Sometimes what you learn can lead to shifts in the way you live your life. One person explained this in the following way.
“My wake-up call came after getting prosecuted for speeding twice in five minutes. Suddenly I had six points on my driving licence.
“Now I see the prosecution as a blessing. Previously I had been addicted to speeding on the motorway. Fortunately I had never hurt myself or, worse still, maimed other people.
“The warning sign led to radically changing my working style. Previously I had got up at 5.00 every morning for the two hour drive and returned home at night.
“I decided to go freelance, do project work and mainly work from home. This was long before Covid forced this on many people and it worked. If I needed to be in an office, I travelled up by train the night before.
“This meant I had lots of energy, was on top of my game and did good work. It worked for myself, my customers and my family.”
Different people choose different ways to act on and learn from the warning signs. Some choose to continue to proactively focus on issues that for them are in the Green, Amber and Red Zones. Let’s explore these themes.
The Green Zone
What is going well in your life at the moment? You may be taking care of your body, enjoying time with your children, developing new skills at work or whatever. One person said the following.
“My relationship with my wife is blossoming. So I aim to keep spending quality time with her.
“Two broken marriages have left their toll. I don’t want it to happen again. We plan to stay together for the rest of our lives.
“I am also doing a stimulating project at work. I want to build on this and show my employers how we can turn it into a profitable service for our customers.
“Looking at other things, I have returned to singing in a band and writing songs. This is something I did in my youth, but have put aside for a while. I intend to create my own website where I can publish the songs.”
Looking at your life, what are the things that are in the green zone? How can you build on these? What will be the benefits?
The Amber Zone
What are the activities where there are warning signs? You may detect these signals in your health, some relationships, financial matters or aspects of your work.
Are there things in the amber zone that it may be important to tackle? One person said the following.
“My health may be becoming issue. During the past year I have put on 2 kilos. Doesn’t sound much, but in the old days I was able to lose weight easily.
“So it’s time to start moving. Even though it is January, I am going to start running, rather than wait for the spring.
“There are also some warning signs at work. The team I lead is successful, but a couple of the team members have started to behave in negative ways that affect other people.
“I will clarify whether they want to follow the agreed professional principles. If not, that is okay. I will replace them with people who want to behave in a professional way and contribute towards achieving the goals.”
How are things for you in work? Do you spend the majority of your time doing work that is satisfying? If not, what is the effect on your energy? What can you do to improve matters?”
Looking at your life, what are the things that are in the amber zone? How can you take action and improve some of these? What will be the benefits?
The Red Zone
Are there any things that are not going well? Are there any recurring problems that create collateral damage for yourself or other people?
Sometimes it can be important to identify the issues and then make a decision about the possible routes forwards. One person said the following.
“One day I realised that I simply had to take more control of my life and work. I had allowed myself to become overwhelmed at work and this affected my health.
“I always felt tired and I had high blood pressure. I tried to turn things around by working more hours, but this did not help.
“Matters came to a head when I tried to cram in a customer appointment on the way home, got caught in a traffic jam and missed my daughter’s Christmas Play.
“This rude awakening taught me to take more control of my life. It also set me on the route to trying to repair my marriage.”
There are many ways to live life. One approach is to build on what is going well but also to learn to act on any potential warning signs. Taking these steps may benefit both yourself and other people.
If you wish, try tackling the final exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
Leave a Reply