Career expert Lauren Berger offers four strategies to help stop the chaos and get it together in your career and personal life.
You feel like a hot mess. You are tired, nervous, can’t stop scrolling on Instagram, and feel like you haven’t “stopped” in years. Does this sound like the life you are currently living? Well, get excited, with my new book, GET IT TOGETHER, we are going to fix all of that. I wrote this book because I was tired of feeling too busy for my own good. I was tired of equating busy with successful. I was ready to make a serious change. But how do you go from chaos to calmness? Here are 4 tips (from the book) that will help you get it together. After all, isn’t that the dream?
1. Stick to the script. Look, life happens to all of us and we can’t control when and how things come about. Last week, I got rejected by a huge company. It was a pitch I’d been working on forever. It completely threw off my day. I wasn’t able to get anything done. I got home and paced around the house. How was I supposed to concentrate? My husband looked at me and said, “hey, stick to the script. Remember?” He was right. I went through the motions of what I’d already planned to do that day; workout, get some writing done, and make that trip to Whole Foods. At the end of the day, I felt like I was back in the driver’s seat.
2. Eliminate the word busy. I’m so busy. He’s so busy. She’s so busy. We get it. There are one million ways to tell someone how busy you are. But if we don’t stop talking about it – we will go nuts! I challenge you to just answer the “how are you?” question with the word “great!” We have to get ourselves out of the busy trap we put ourselves in.
3. Match your calendar to your to-do list. Here’s the deal, if I have a long to-do list written down but I’m scheduled on calls and in meetings all day, that doesn’t make sense. I’m one human with two hands and one mouth. How can I work on my to-do list while I’m on calls and in meetings? You have to make it match. Block out time to handle the items on your to-do list. Can’t do it all in one day? Welcome to the real world! Make a shorter to-do list. Focus on the five things you must accomplish. Prioritize based on deadline.
4. Forgive Yourself. We aren’t superheroes. Even though Instagram makes our lives look perfect, we all know how imperfect life can be. Give yourself a break. Remind yourself that you’re only human. Mistakes will come – at work, at home, and just in general. Learn to love yourself and forgive yourself. We have constant opportunity for new beginnings.
Hopefully, this gives you a sneak peek into my new book. This was quite the personal journey for me. First, I had to admit that I didn’t feel “together” all of the time. And then – I had to find the solution. And in a world of busy, that’s not so easy. But trust me – there is a way to feel better, to create stronger boundaries for yourself – even to find time to relax. Enjoy the book!
Lauren Berger is the CEO + Founder of InternQueen.com, a lifestyle brand helping young people connect with their dream careers. She also founded and oversees the IQ Campus Marketing Agency, which helps connect brands with the network of people using her platforms. She is also the founder of the career-enhancement company Lauren Berger, Inc.
