Today’s Corporate Catwalk is the epitome of “classic chic”. This Carmen By Carmen Marc Valvo dress is simply distinctive, what with its original plaid patterning and the unique shoulder cutout details. The contemporary elegance of this dress is so well balanced with the classic sheath silhouette. Not to mention that it’s perfect to transition from Summer to Fall! This dress is $168 at Neiman Marcus.
So there, suitcases are packed, passports are out, you’re ready to jet off on your vacation, finally! No month-end reports or emails in sight for the next few days. Only sandy beaches, margaritas, and relaxation galore! But did you also know that this long-awaited and overdue vacation is not just going to save you from your boss and over-booked calendar?
Actually, this time off laying on the beach sipping on a mango margarita while enjoying the latest summer read could very well be pushing your career to the next level…Are you smiling yet?
We already know taking a vacation, unplugging, disconnecting is good for your career. It helps you reconnect with who you are, what you value, and what’s important, so we can come back more relaxed and emotionally grounded. That ‘s the average, general case scenario.
What we don’t often realize is that we can actually leverage this time to propel our careers forward. Because it’s not just enough to jet off to some exotic spot in the Caribbeans, or run out of the office as if a ghost were after you…However, it takes some practice and a bit of discipline to turn this time of relaxation into an actual career asset (even if that’s not exactly what you’re thinking about as you’re lounging on the hot sand).
I still remember this particularly eventful vacation where I actually spent most of my time checking email and stressing about how much work I had to do when I’d come back. End result? I left stressed, went swimming stressed, and came back to work stressed…with an extra five pounds to boot.
No, this is not about visiting a gazillion museums and trying every local bakery (although there’ something about carbs and vacation, but I digress). This is about being clear about what your time off is about. Is this vacation an opportunity to spend some time with family? Is it a personal time of introspection, or do you need to get away to re-evaluate your priorities?
Being clear about it will help you be more conscious of those areas you need to heal, or ponder about while away. Instead of scattering your time in endless activities, you’ll be more mentally attuned to yourself. You’ll be surprised at how much clearer you are once the vacation ends.
Boost Your Creativity (and Give Your Brain a Break).
As in, stop worrying about that project you handed in before vacation, or that email you may not have sent out. Our brains are flooded every day with huge amounts of information we barely seem to control. And in turn, it blocks the natural creativity that helps us come up with new ideas and innovative concepts.
On vacation, your mental activity is stimulated by new experiences and new sights. Not mention the benefits of mental and emotional relaxation, which also set you up for success. Instead of the usual apathy and mental tiredness you may be used to dealing with, you’ll be buzzing with new ideas and motivation when you get back to the office.
Limit your access to work.
Yes, the point of being on vacation is to unplug from work and really enjoy the time away from the office. Yet, the reality for many is that we’re still connected…even a little bit, when on vacation. Rather than giving in to the guilt of not being connected at all, or on the other end of the spectrum, being surgically attached to your handheld device, why not reach a middle ground?
If you absolutely have to check on work, promise yourself to do it in a limited manner. Whether it’s once a day for no more than a half hour, or once a week, set a limit and stick to it. Only address urgent emails, while keeping in mind this will also lessen the pile of work you find when you get back.
Set goals for your return to work.
Yes, you want to take advantage of every ounce of your vacation. Yet, taking the last couple of days to mentally prepare yourself to return to the office can put you at the top of your game. Think about your goals and objectives for the remainder of the year, and how you can best achieve them.
Even better, take some time to visualize your success at work. If you can, write down some of your most important goals in a notebook or journal.
Mantra = a word or phrase that is repeated often or that expresses someone’s basic beliefs (Merriam-Webster dictionary)
There are just days when you need a dose of inspiration. You know those days, when you wake up wondering why you haven’t made Senior Manager yet, or if your life was really supposed to go this way…Or why laundry never ever seems to end (I’ve been pondering on this one for quite a while)…Or on Sunday night when Monday morning’s looming near…
I know I do…There’s only so much mascara and blush to keep you pumped up for the day. Because it all starts in your mind, as you decide to push yourself beyond the daily mundane or obstacles in your way. That’s why successful women (and men) adopt mantras to keep them inspired and motivated.
In the words of motivational speaker and author Abiola Abrams, “your mantra is your fight song“. In the midst of all the negative noise and our chronic “busyness”, we now more than ever need to take back our power; which means we must also adopt new ways of thinking. That’s where mantras come in, to help us change or reinforce positive beliefs through empowering words or phrases we make part of our daily lives.
A few years back, I started realizing that most of the obstacles I was facing were not coming from the outside, but from within. At the time, I was working with a business coach, who started recommending that I write and speak mantras on a daily basis. I have to say it was a struggle at first. Having never questioned some of my most basic (and most limiting) beliefs about myself, learning to believe and say out loud that “I cannot fail“, or that “I am successful“, felt like chocolate cake without chocolate. Weird.
As I faced some of my most potent mindset blocks, I started developing new habits. I looked to successful women around me, and studied their mindsets for success. As a result, here are 7 of my favorite success mantras for successful women:
I’ve been impatiently waiting to see “Bad Moms“, and yesterday finally grabbed my sis-in-law, kissed the hubby and kids good-night, and headed straight for a movie treat. And what a treat it was!
This hilarious yet sentimental comedy had me laughing, tearing up, and leaving most of my “mommy guilt” on the movie theater seat. I said most of it, still gotta worry about some stuff after all…
Think of it as the mommy/female version of the Hangover movie. A comedy aimed at destroying the gender stereotype of smother mothers everywhere. You know the mothers I’m talking about…The ones who spend hours making their babies’ homemade foods only to give you the side eye when you pop your store-bought jars of pureed carrots from your stained diaper bag. Or the ones who raise their eyebrows when you don’t volunteer for at least two extra-curricular activities, or bring non-homemade goodies to the school’s bake sale…
In “Bad Moms”, Amy, a devoted 32-year-old working mom to her two kids, bends over backwards to emulate that stereotype. So she runs from kids’ drop-offs to annoying work meeting, then to two-hour-long PTA meetings and unending bake sales…all the while her husband’s cheating on her and she’s nearing a mental breakdown. Until the day she decides enough is enough, and goes on a “bad mom” trip…And the rest is an artfully orchestrated sequence of funny, inspirational and at times downright emotional, yet oh so real moments…
I loved watching Amy (played by the amazing Mila Kunis), as the “good mom gone bad”, put her childish, cheating husband out and decide to stop coddling her kids so much, so she can have a real life. The neurotic, “doormat mom” Kiki (played by Kristen Bell) had me jumping off my seat when she told her hubby to figure out how to care for their kids on his own. And the overly sexed-up, hilarious Carla (Kathryn Hahn) had me in stitches as she sought to make out with pretty much anything reminiscent of a male sexual organ, while unapologetically being her own kind of “bad mom”.
The thing is, I could find myself in each and every one of these women. I, and most moms out there, have been there. Trying to fit in the annoying work meeting with the kids’ pickup schedule. Bringing store-bought brownies to the bake sale (albeit on a beautiful platter, pretending they just came out of the oven). Saying yes to the school PTA meeting when all you really want is go home and lay down. We’ve also been on the other side of the spectrum too, obsessing over every detail, and checking to make sure the baby’s diapers are bio-degradable. Or just skipping that last diaper change, giving hurried instructions to the babysitter so we could enjoy a night out with the girls.
I know I have…And I know I’m not the only one. It still stings a bit when I remember this fellow mom bragging about what an honor it is to give birth “naturally”, after I had just delivered my first baby via emergency C-section. Or the unsolicited advice from other women about pretty much everything from how to feed your kid to how much time you should spend with them…And the silent shame and guilt at being an ambitious working mom hustling for my dreams, instead of focusing every single minute of every waking day to my kids…Feeling like I had to get it (and keep it) together, at work, at the kids’ school, on the playground, or as I try to pee alone. Exhausting! Utterly, definitely, unbelievably exhausting!
Being a mom has never been so hard as it is today. In our ultra-connected, social-media driven society where our kids are over scheduled, over-stimulated, and frankly over-spoiled, we feel the need to do it all, and do it all perfectly all the time. To be the mom who takes her kids to all the swim meets and piano lessons and soccer games, while making sure their school projects are the best, that they eat enough protein and look perfect on every Instagram picture. Truth is, that seemingly perfect mom, is so tired she falls asleep as soon as she sits down somewhere, and has to buy extra packages of concealer to make it through a regular workday. No wonder she doesn’t exactly think about sex (unless it’s scheduled ahead of time) or still wears her mom bra from her last pregnancy five years ago…
Bottom line: none of us is perfect, and none of us is a perfect mom. And it felt so good to see our fears, awkward, happy and crazy mommy moments translated on-screen in such a simple yet personal way. It felt so good to just kick my heels and for once, stop blaming myself for not being like the next mom. To just laugh at the mistakes, celebrate the good, and accept that there’s a “bad mom” in all of us, and that it’s OK.
I stepped out of the movie theater with a pep in my step, a fresh swipe of my Revlon lipstick bought on sale earlier, and a newfound appreciation for the woman inside. I can’t guarantee I won’t be late for the kids’ pickup next week, but what I’m sure of is, I’ll never look at myself the same again. Or at any other mom out there. We’re all doing the best we can, and that’s a heck of a lot already…
So for today, I’ll just enjoy being a “bad mom” and skipping the laundry…and the dishes too…Oh and by the way, we’re ordering out….
And if you’re still on the fence, check out the official trailer here:
PS: Shoutout to all the “bad moms” out there, you rock!
Podcast alert! In my latest contribution to the amazing Cubicle Chick site, check out my 7 favorite podcasts for women entrepreneurs;
If you’ve ver been afraid of not being liked at work, you must read Ellevate’s Sallie Krawcheck’s beautiful (and real) article on making peace with not being liked;
It’s still summer, and I know, you’d still rather be at the beach than stuck at your desk. Levo confirms these 6 reasons why you’re so much less productive in the summer;
Night owl alert! Speaking of downsizing the productivity, especially at night, this Business Insider’s contributor lists 6 things she learnt while following Arianna Huffington’s pretty elaborate bedtime routine for a week…and what she found out is pretty awesome;
If you’re heading to school this Fall, it’s essay writing season! Black Enterprise has a few tips to help you stay ahead of the curve!
For your dose of inspiration this week, Ellevate Network offers seven tips to succeed as a woman in a man’s world;
Ever been asked about your work style in an interview? Careerealism tips you off on how to answer;
Working your butt off but not getting promoted? The Muse tells you why (and it has nothing to do with your skills);
Speaking of not succeeding at work, could you be having any of these three mindsets that are keeping you from shattering your own career ceiling?
Wondering what to cook this month to take advantage of the last days of summer? Cookie and Kate has great options;
Oh, and while you’re at it, how about brightening up your wardrobe with this cheery ponte sheath dress?
So there, suitcases are packed, passports are out, you’re ready to jet off on 
Mantra = a word or phrase that is repeated often or that expresses someone’s basic beliefs (Merriam-Webster dictionary)
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