Thoughts for the week ........ Work/life balance

As I am finally home after working another 12 hour day, my thoughts turn to what my company terms "work/life balance". Being part of an IT department does have it's own challenges when comes to work life balance. As much as I have learned to say no, it hard to do it when it comes to work. However, after this crazy week, I am finding myself bone tired and irritated that I had to stay almost an extra three hours to fix a whimsy users problem because she waited all day before she reported it. While I was leaving I realize not one of my teammates stuck around to help out. But I have realized that if not only did I need to achieve it but maintain it for my health and sanity.
So what does this all have to do with weight loss? I have found that certain things are triggers for eating. Stress is one of my triggers, nothing tasted better then a cheeseburger after a day of dealing with issues. In the last six months, I have learned there are other ways to get rid of stress other then eating. I find that reading, blogging, video games and exercise help a great deal. But to find the time for those things I have to work on a work life balance. I had to change my attitude towards work, that it was okay to leave stuff undone to the next day. It was okay to say I am not staying late. I know taking care of myself physically and mentally is key to my success, not only at losing weight but other goals that I have set in front of me.

Looking back at the times where I allowed my work to create stress and frustration in my life I now realize what I thought was important really was not. I am not saying you should not take your work seriously, what I am saying is that we need to realize that life is all about balance.