This contributor post was written by Tiffany Moore.
One of the biggest things I hear from the creative entrepreneurs that I work with is about needing more balance.
I need more life/work balance.
I can’t turn my job off at 5pm.
I check my email all the time.
How many of you are guilty of checking your email as soon as you wake up in the morning? (Tell the truth.)
I used to be that person who would roll over, grab her phone to turn the alarm off, and immediately click the mail icon to see if anything VERY IMPORTANT had happened in the 7 hours I’d been asleep.
I don’t really know what I was expecting or what I thought I might miss, but it seemed like a very good idea to do this all the time. Immerse myself in email, to show my dedication to my work, right? Wrong.
I have clients and friends who do the same thing and are constantly lamenting that its so hard not to check their email as soon as they wake up.
My simple solution: remove the problem and buy an alarm clock.
By taking away access to your email, you simply cannot check it immediately upon waking, and the habit shifts.
Its amazing how simple the solution is sometimes.
Are you someone who suffers from a lack of work/life balance? What kind of freedom might an alarm clock give you?
How could you apply this simple solutions theory to other parts of your business and life?
(Remember: dont think too hard!)
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*image via oohprettyshiny alarm clock green photo print
Tiffany Moore, CPCC is a life & business coach for highly-creative people who arent living the highly-creative lives they want. Just yet. With provocative questions & hard-edged encouragement, Tiffany helps skittish someday-ers become fiercely focused creators “” and proves that dreams do come true. But only when you demand it.
19 comments | Click here to reply
How buying an alarm clock can change your life. http://t.co/yZvatBxr
Beads and Honey (@BeadsandHoney)LOVED this post!
But you know what … I do have an alarm clock – and no phone that is able to check emails. Still – I do a similar thing. I turn my computer on as soon as I wake up. And in a way that is even worse … because I check my email, start my browser with open tabs, look at facebook … instead of doing thinks like working on orders, or editing photos (offline!) or writing blogposts or such ….
Maybe I should have another computer without internet access at all! *lol*
Thanks for this post though! I get the idea behind it and totally agree!
xox
Ursula@CuteliciousUrsula
It really works, i have learned your tricks from my adhd coach and it’s a great one, i don’t like it always but that clock had save me many times.
jetso this is a great advice you’re given us all.
good luck with it.
OOOh and check in the shop the alarm bell. I have had bought a few that didn’t worked at all.-S
Are you guilty of checking your emails as soon as you wake up? I know I am.. and this looks a great idea to break… http://t.co/IvFV2Qlc
Liss (@freshhoney)How buying an alarm clock can change your life. // http://t.co/FCifN2Ou
(@EtsyAU) (@EtsyAU)this is great!!! i am SO guilty!!!!! this might be just the excuse i need to find a cute vintage alarm clock. 🙂
water and earthI actually do have a separate alarm clock than my iphone, but I also charge my phone on my nightstand when I sleep. Soooo, the problem persists since my phone is right there in the morning. I think I need to maybe charge my phone on my dresser or in another room to break the habit. Thanks for the article; it got me thinking! 🙂
KaylaSuch a great tip and I will certainly be making the adjustment! I admit, if it isn’t my phone, it’s my Kindle, or my laptop, so I think they’ll all need to sleep in the living room 🙂
Chelsea BondI agree it is totally habbit. I made a bet that I wouldn’t post on FB for a week, I could still look. but I wasn’t that bothered, so I started checking it less and less. Maybe it is time to start that again. Also if you have a blackberry, you can stop your work emails going to your phone after say 5pm. Makes life much MUCH better 🙂 great post! x
LolaHmm. Having an alarm clock rather than using a phone alarm stops the immediate checking of email, but you can still get up to an alarm clock and walk into your office and check your email first thing. Still not a good thing to do for awesome productivity and work life balance! Your suggestion of not checking email first is an awesome one in general, though. I suggest that as well and I suggest setting certain times throughout the day to check email, deal with it efficiently and then get back out of it. It can totally be a time suck.
Leanne ChesserHow buying an alarm clock can change your life http://t.co/qAjp7Me2
(@savvyjulie) (@savvyjulie)I am guilty of this and I love the idea of getting an alarm clock. I would like to incorporate a more mindful morning ritual with a little journaling and maybe some yoga. My iPhone doesn’t belong in this ritual so I guess the best thing would be to get it out of the bedroom. Thanks for the inspiration.
Maj JensenHow buying an alarm clock can change your life. http://t.co/0RSWKF2s via @sharethis
jennifer laber (@jennifer_laber)I am definitely guilty of this. I’m going out and getting an alarm clock tonight and moving the charger to the other side of my bedroom. Thanks for this post!
jenniferOur very own @tiffanycmoore has a new post up on @papernstitch http://t.co/HGqDujQc Find out how buying an alarm clock can change your life!
(@teahousestudio) (@teahousestudio)I have a new post up on @papernstitch http://t.co/oCYYceiK Find out how buying an alarm clock can change your life!
(@tiffanycmoore) (@tiffanycmoore)Are you someone who suffers from a lack of work/life balance? Here’s one simple solution http://t.co/UzF5pYTR
(@papernstitch) (@papernstitch)Hi Nascara. Wow! Checking your phone in the middle of night is definitely in the ‘hardcore’ category. 🙂 I’m glad you vowed to yourself to pare things down a little. Good for you!
papernstitch-Brittni
This is such a great suggestion. Before reading this, I vowed this morning to not check Facebook for a week. I will move my phone back into the kitchen. Sometimes I check the phone in the middle of the night when I get up. Ridiculous.
Nascara