Having recently got back from a week in Corfu, doing not too much, trying to rest and recharge on the beach, I feel like my head is a bit clearer for lack of work stress, and want to hold on to that feeling!

Being a small business owner, I am not alone in needing to take care of my mental health and to be wary of burnout from trying to spin so many plates all the time.

Being on holiday and standing back from the daily tasks we all get swamped with is an amazing thing, but it is also hard to just switch off. My brain wants to stay busy, so I find little things to do, podcasts to listen to, travel guides to read, places to go and see. It is all low-level stuff, but actually "there is no such thing as active resting" so my son recently told me. Although I did really manage to switch off, set my emails to out of office, something I don't tend to do! (Partly because I could never work out how on my old provider system!) I had to resist the temptation to read notifications, and eventually switched them off too!

My main reason for really trying to get space is that I haven't been feeling well for the last month; lots of aches and pains and exhaustion, so it seemed almost essential to de-stress and unwind and get a lot of rest. A little nap after lunch was fabulous, I wish that was easier to weave into my working day....

When I get space, I always see plenty of things I would rather be doing other than work. Even though it is very creative, I still have to spend an awful lot of time sat at a desk and I don't like it. I would much rather be out and about. To do some of the other things I get so little time to do! I am sure I am not alone. Hitting my mid-fifties, I know a lot of people feel the same pull away from being a work slave, why not?? I also love my business and parts of my job, so it is a quandary I am trying to get my head around!

So I decided I would write down what I see as my holiday learnings to see if I can dovetail more of what I want to be doing into my life, and to help displace desk-based drudgery!

Here are some notes I took on my phone:

Weave the holiday experience into my life somehow so it's not forgotten

Have age-appropriate expectations of myself and my life

Get out to see more art and people

Do more sketchbook art

Work on delegating the things I hate doing!

I also try to remember to find the joy in the daily tasks, to do them with good grace... to enjoy spreadsheets?? To keep my desk looking nice and organised (failed) To see each job as a pleasurable experience, like decorating my designs and packing the kiln, and to stop when I am not enjoying it! 

Now I would like to add to that that it is a necessity to go out and seek inspiration and to connect with others! To look up exhibitions and book time off work to do them. I strive to not work on Friday, so I am going to make that happen, get on the train, get out and absorb some art. Tomorrow I am off to London to visit my son and see my designs in the Natural History Museum Shop :-)

So how do us fifty-somethings make a transition to being kinder to ourselves, to keep fit and active, and keep up with a full time job.... but not get burnout? I am still trying to listen to my body and take note, but also to push against its inclination to rest! Finding that balance is not easy, but I feel my mental state is key. So I need to keep that holiday feeling alive!

Now to tidy that desk......