Month: August 2016

My future is Magenta

~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

Love your life

Some people say the situations life presents dictate what kind of life you will have. Others maintain it’s the way you react to life’s challenges and opportunities that determines your satisfaction in life. I certainly believe that the latter is true.

Next week, Magenta Financial Planning will start to trade. This is a big deal for me and very exciting!

It’s been a while in the making, a lot of hard work and a significant learning curve – but now it’s all becoming a reality and that really is very satisfying.

When Julie Lord (my business partner) approached me with this opportunity, I was nervous and wasn’t sure if I was ready for it. I have never had major aspirations to run my own business and was worried about taking on the responsibility and risk. But as I thought about it more, and discussed it with my friends and family, I knew that this was a challenge worth accepting – that this opportunity had the power to significantly change my life – making me happier, both in the short and long term.

I’ve worked closely with Julie for some years and we have our ups and downs, like you do in any relationship (friends / family / colleagues). However, as we have been discussing our plans for Magenta over the past few months – it’s been great to know we are both on the same page for our plans for the business and our futures.

The last year has taught me that it’s really important to be happy at work. This has an impact on all your life – your health, wellbeing and relationships. You have more energy for friends, family and yourself, if you are satisfied at work.

I’ve always given my all in every job I have had, both for my clients and for the team, but this has historically been associated with long hours, stress, regular tears and backstabbing from other colleagues.

I’m still tired at the end of the week, I’m still juggling lots of different roles and I still get frustrated by some things…. But generally I can say that I enjoy most of my days at work now. That’s pretty amazing.

I am determined our business will nurture a team that cares about our clients and their dreams, and how we can help them to achieve these.

I believe that our team can be truly successful and happy – if we try to consistently be positive about work, health and life in general and treat others how we would want to be treated.

Be in love with your life, every aspect, every minute of it!

More news next week and some pictures!

Beating those Monday Blues

~ gretchenbetts ~ Leave a comment

 

Everyone suffers a little with the ‘Monday Blues’.

My sister, Geraldine and my brother-in-law Steve, regularly used to suffer from ‘Sunday lows’ – where they just worked themselves up into a mini depression each Sunday night about returning to work. That’s changed a bit since the birth of Jackson, but they are both still inclined to dread the return to work after a holiday or time off. It will be super tough for Geraldine when she goes back to work after maternity leave in a few weeks!

I’m certainly not suffering from the usual Sunday night dread now I have moved to a job I love, but you still get that feeling about needing to work yourself up for the week. Often my Sunday night’s sleep is the worst of my week.

So, here are some tips for beating those blues or lows – taken from www.lifehack.org where they suggest the idea of one small task to do every day – to help control the gloom of your Sunday night.

1.Sunday Evening – Key goals for the week. Take 5 minutes to remind yourself of any important goals you may have for the week and which days you intend to achieve them. They don’t need to be big goals. Remember the journey of a thousand miles starts with your first step. Factor in that daily exercise you should be doing, however short. With this mini-plan, when Monday comes, you’ll have lots to look forward to.

2. Monday morning – Make someone else happy. Think of the people you know and decide which of them might appreciate some kind gesture from you. It could be something small. Even saying hello to someone you see often but never greet can do wonders for their day. You hardly need to be reminded that you too will feel happier when you see how your action is appreciated.

3. Tuesday morning – Plan some surprise fun activity with your partner this evening. Surprises are always nice to receive, so your partner will find this even more fun than something they’re expecting. If you don’t have a partner, then get in touch with a family member, friend or colleague to join in something that gives you both pleasure.

4. Wednesday morning – Eat a healthy lunch. You should be eating well throughout the week, but take special pains today to have a nutritious and healthy lunch, perhaps at some eating venue you don’t visit very often.

5. Thursday morning – Plan your weekend. Plan some recreational activity for the weekend and do whatever preparations are needed to make it happen. The only people you need to keep happy are you (and your family) so make the most of every weekend opportunity you have.

6. Friday morning – TGIF so do something different. Everyone tends to let their hair down a little on Friday, so make this the day that you do something very different each week. That could be a lunch time visit to a nearby art gallery or a quick round of mini-golf.

7. Saturday morning – Make sure you get some exercise today. You should be getting convenient exercise every day, but don’t forget to include Saturday. The weekend is not a time to be a vegetable. Don’t sleep the weekend away. Rise early, enjoy the day and get moving with that recreational activity you planned on Thursday.