Strategies to Success

As a mother, homemaker, wife, caregiver and student I find the following three strategies to be of utmost importance to success. Primarily, one must put affairs in order. this includes listing obligations in a prioritized manner. Second, time management plays a large role on when and how tasks are implemented. Third, finding self-coping skills to deal with the stressors help increase the energy and produce the great effort needed to conduct your goals.

Working as nurse for several years has allowed me to learn how to effectively prioritize my actives on a daily basis. Several researchers, including Joe Landsberger (Study Guides and Strategies, 1996), have stated that it is important to help yourself become aware of how you use your time. Creating a list and prioritizing it can help schedule goals around plans, and leisure time around running errands. It is important to separate the daily "to do" list form the "in the near future." This keeps goals within a tangible manner. Setting realistic and achievable daily obligations and straying from overloading yourself is essential. I believe, if something can not be completed today, it could be set aside to be done first thing tomorrow.

Managing time is crucial since there are long work hours and short time to spend leisurely. With remembering to maintain a healthy lifestyle, one can end up burnt-out easily. Learning to apply work, play and rest together can help greatly. For example, making lunch for the family on a Saturday could easily turn into a local picnic at the park. After feeding the kids, I could have my in-laws watch them safely play while I walk over to the local bank to make a deposit, and pick up the dry cleaning next door. While I am making my rounds I make a few important phone calls on the way back to the park. Being creative during work can help relieve the monotonous routine we feel to be in at times.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle not only means eating and sleeping well, but also includes taking a few minutes out of the day for a breather. What I find to be most useful is Yoga. For the past 3 weeks, engaging in Yoga activity for 30 minutes, three times a week has considerably decreased tension in my shoulders and headaches. During the Yoga sessions or any healthy exercise habits, one can find inner peace and feel more energetic. I now look forward to exercising and hope to continue to feel better. According to Help Guide, when Yoga is practiced regularly, these activities lead to a reduction in your everyday stress levels and a boost in your feelings of joy and serenity.

In conclusion, prioritization and time management skills are effective strategies to achieving goals. Adding stress coping skills like practicing Yoga a few times a week can further aide in the road to success.