Confession #7: It is all about Harmony

Recently I posted a quote from Sheryl Sandberg regarding work and life balance and how such a thing doesn’t really exist. I happen to agree with this 100%. We Millennial’s are multi-taskers, overachievers, ambitious and we want it all: a great career, our own business, volunteer for non-profits and a family. And we won’t settle for one or the other—and why should we?  Many times we are told, “You can’t have it all, you either have a great career and are very successful or you have a family, not both at the same time”. Granted I don’t have kids yet, but I have a husband, a house and a four legged fury creature that I have to tend to everyday. But I don’t feel like I have to give up my dreams and aspirations to take care of my little family—on the contrary, they are the reason I want to pursue my dreams.

Finding time to spend quality time together!

Recently the hubby told me something he heard and I agree with it 100%: what we need to achieve is work and life harmony. I am very blessed to have married a man who believes in me and encourages me to take on challenges. We both support each other on the pursuit of our dreams and we make sacrifices for each other when necessary.

For example, the other day I was stressing out with a test a had to take for my MBA, and the hubby took care of dinner—we ate take out—but still, he knew I was stressing so he made sure I didn’t have to worry about making food for us. He also took care of our dog and made sure she didn’t bother me while I was taking the test—she loves to jump on top of me and sit on my laptop when I am working which is cute but annoying. He tidy up the house a bit because he knows that I get even more stressed when the house is messy. All these small things tell me that he has my back and that he will make sure I achieve my goals. 

talking about support, these two fell asleep in my office while I was studying. they are there for me even if they are sleeping

I do the same for him.Last year, a great speaking opportunity popped up for the hubby but it was on the day of my birthday. His initial reaction was to decline because of my birthday, but I knew it was a great opportunity so I told him to accept it. I helped him prep for the presentation and on the day of, I was there helping with logistics and other things. After the keynote, we celebrated my birthday, and it was awesome. It’s all about compromise. We are both busy at work and most days, we have engagements after work.  But not one days goes by, without us talking to each other---even if it’s late and I am talking incoherently because I am sleepy—we make sure we communicate with each other constantly. 

Celebrating my birthday after the speaking engagement!

So we have found the work/life harmony that works for us. We are able to spend quality time with each other, take care of our family and still pursue our dreams. Yes, some days we are so exhausted and tired we ask ourselves “what are we doing?” but then we get some rest and we are ready to keep going. I can’t say that this will continue to be the same when kids come into the picture, but I am sure we will be able to adjust our work/life harmony as needed.

The day we promised to be teammates for the rest of our lives!

 

The way I say it, marriage is a team. And much like a sports team works, the parties have to be synchronized to win the game. Also, teammates got to have each other’s back and fill in for one another when necessary. A marriage is no different. Make sure you have the right teammate—I sure do!

@thewifey

Confession #6: 5Ks and cookies and steaks, Oh my!

So I haven’t posted anything in a week or so and I feel like there is a lot to tell!! First of all, am I the only one that gets depressed by the fact that the sun goes down at 5pm now? Darn daylight savings time! It’s like I get home from work and its dark so I just want to go to bed. I find that around this time of the year a need a little extra motivation to do certain things like working out and doing productive things after I get home from work. So here are a couple of things we have been doing to keep motivated.

This past weekend we completed our first “5K”. I say “5K” because while we were so excited about being able to run the whole thing, we were told at the end that it was really only 2.5 miles. So no wonder we felt like first class athletes. It was still super fun and it was super cold that day, so I feel a little extra proud of us!!

My hair was a total mess afterwards, but it was sooo worth it!

 

Another way I stay motivated is by reading empowering books that make me want to be better and more productive. I’ve read a couple of powerful books, mainly directed at women like “Lean In” by Sheryl Sandberg, “#Girlboss” by Sophia Amorouso, “Bossy Pants” by Tina Fey and “Is everyone hanging out without me” by Mindy Kaling. These books have had a very positive impact in both my professional and personal life. I highly recommend them! The hubby recently surprised me by getting me a “just because” gift: Arianna Huffington’s book, Thrive. We are always looking for ways to help each other grow, and buying these power-packed books for each other is a great way to do so!  Can’t wait to start reading!

#Womenlead #powerfulwomen

 

And talking about reading, I have been trying to find ways to study for my two MBA classes, and honestly, there is no easy way to do this. Being back in school with a full time job is definitely NOT as fun as being a full time college student. For starters, as a full time student, an all-nighter for me meant never going to sleep. Now, an all-nighter for me means studying until 11pm, maybe 12pm…how sad! I did find a nice spot in my office with a nice view of the sunset, so now I pretend to study while enjoying the nice view.

pretending to study

 

And finally, staying motivated to eat healthy is still a big task—but we are doing it! On one hand, we have completely banned certain foods from our lives like fast foods, and on the other hand we have reduced the intake of certain foods like rice and bread. So far so good! The hubby is done with his 3 month program and he did great! He lost a total of 33 pounds, and adopted healthier eating habits. We will continue to work out and eat healthy long term—at least that’s the plan! Salads have become my specialty; I try to make them as delicious as possible. And I found a recipe for whole wheat oatmeal cookies that is out of this world! I altered the recipe and instead of adding oats I added raisin/pumpkin granola and brown sugar instead of granulated white. Needless to say, they were delicious and almost guilt-free.

yummy!

The key is not being too prohibitive with food. Like for example, our good friend Rodney celebrated his birthday at a steakhouse yesterday and that was the perfect excuse to splurge a little. Because if you go to a steakhouse and order a garden salad, not only is that a waste of time, it is a slap in the face for the restaurant and the people at the table—seriously. So, being the good friends that we are, we honored our friend by eating delicious juicy steaks—you will see me at spinning class tomorrow burning it all off! Also, I learned that a medium well fillet mignon looks very different from a medium fillet mignon. I learned this after arguing with the waiter and complaining about how much smaller and flat my fillet mignon looked— yep the dieter/healthier me was complaining that her steak was small, such is life! It was delicious and I enjoyed every single bite.

 

So what keeps you motivated during the winter time??


@thewifey