When you prepare for a road trip where there will be adverse conditions, you take extra precautions with your car. You have the service technician perform extra checks to ensure that your car will perform optimally. You listen for confirmation when he says, “You’re good to go.”

Busy season is an example of a time of adverse conditions. It is not the norm to work 55+ hours a week for a 2-3 months on end with no breaks (and if you do, you have other problems). Just like your car, when you’re exceptionally busy for an extended period of time, you need to take additional precautions in order to function at optimal capacity.
The last few messages have given you a checklist of added routines you need so you aren’t overtaken by the load. As a reminder, here’s the checklist.

1. In order to protect your focus and priorities, ask yourself regularly how you are investing three resources at your disposal: your time, your energy and your attention. When you look at the daily choices you make, are you investing wisely? For those who committed to begin each day examining how they will invest, are you still doing it? CHECK

2. In terms of motivating yourself, look to the key areas that have proven to make a difference. Do you feel connected to your team and what are you doing to maintain that connection? Or do you succumb to the work at hand to rob you of investing in this vital area? Then there’s tracking your achievements. Have you set your targets for the day and week for accomplishment and are you monitoring your progress? Making progress is motivational. And finally, do you take control of your choices and not fall into the victim-thinking that you have no choice? CHECK

3. Then you have to breathe. Interjecting your day with slow breathing, exhaling twice as long as you inhale, forces you out of the cycle of high alert stress and into a more relaxed state. This is especially helpful in the moments when you feel pressured, panicked or overwhelmed. CHECK

That’s it. If you can check off these important routines, you are in optimal condition to be productive AND balanced. Yep, you’re good to go.