Help me with this, folks. I start my day off on some ethereal clock that says 7:30 (when it's really 8:30). And it's all downhill from there. Cutting one meeting short, late to another, driving like a maniac, people waiting for me, people not waiting anymore; I'm fuming, impatient, embarrassed, yada, yada, yada...What is the success-formula for starting your day off wrong???
'Cause we don't get do-over's; and make-up attempts to those we afflict sound so petty and pithy: "I'm sorry, it's just that I don't know how to tell time." Please!
I'm wracking my brain wondering what Jesus did when he had these kinds of mornings....but he's Jesus, so did He?
I need a formula, I'll even take a theory. Anything is better than just plowing through the rest of a bad-start day and ending it that way.
11 Comments Here:
Meooooow.........
Heather, I have those days ALOT!! Sometimes I think that it's God letting me know he's there. Especially if I've prayed for patience, he seems to present a situation where patience has to be used. I'll just look up and laugh and say thank you God for letting me know you're there. If I roll in the direction of the bad (ex: spilling something, getting frustruated, traffic) then my day goes that way, but if I go the opposite way and laugh it off, sometimes those days that start off so badly are the days that turn out the best. There's a cute song by Sarah Bruxton called "It's that kind of day". It's exactly about what your're talking about.
Have a great day.
Kristin
"I'm late, I'm late for a very important date. No time to say hello, good-bye, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late." ~ The White Rabbit (Alice in Wonderland)
Hey Heather! I am late to things too...thanks so much for writing about this topic...made me google for some tips or strategies...Here are some I just found in a New York Times Article called: "For the Chronically Late, It’s Not a Power Trip"
1. HAVE A STRATEGY Make a commitment to work on the problem every day for at least a month.
2. RELEARN HOW TO TELL TIME Late people tend to underestimate the amount of time their activities take by 25 percent to 30 percent. Write down all your activities and clock how long they actually take.
3. NEVER PLAN TO BE ON TIME Instead, plan to be early. Punctual people build in extra transit time because they know that unexpected delays can occur. Many tardy people — in their naïve optimism — have never learned to do this.
4. WELCOME THE WAIT Bring a magazine, a book or some language tapes so that you can entertain yourself and get something done while you wait.
*****************
I am going to commit to these tips for the next month and see what happens :-) We all have 24 hours in a day, so if others can be punctual, we can too!
Thanks for your blog!
Lily Cuadra
JIMMY ERICKSON..{YOU KNOW WHO I AM TALKING ABOUT } WAS IN VIETNAM DURING THE WAR ...HE WAS SUPPOSE TO BE AT THE "MED" TENT AT A CERTAIN TIME ..HE WAS RUSHING AROUND LIKE MAD TRYING TO GET THERE AND WAS TEN MINUTES LATE..THANK GOD HE WAS ..THE TENT HAD BEEN BOMB AND MANY LIFES WERE LOST ..IF HE WOULD HAVE BEEN "ON TIME" HE WOULD HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE CASUALTIES..THIS MIGHT SOUND MORBID..BUT I LEARNED ALOT FROM IT ... THE BOTTOM LINE ....GOD IS IN CONTROL ..IF WE ARE THE KINGS KID ..HE HAS HIS HAND ON OUR LIFE AND THINGS HAPPEN FOR A REASON .. REMEMBER ...VERY SIMPLE ..." A MAN PLANS HIS WAY BUT GOD DIRECTS HIS STEPS..LOV YOU ..MOM
Lili, Mom and Kristin - Man, God blessed you guys BIG time with some wisdom on this. Thank you for sharing it with me and others!
Hey Heather,
I can totally feel your frustration and frazzled state. Days like that can be so difficult. Before Christmas those days seemed to come all too frequently. During the school break I got to slow down with my boys. No meetings. No phone calls. No computer work. Things felt good and days got better. I realized that I way doing too many things, and not doing any of them wonderfully. I realized that God was telling me to slow down. So I am. I realized that if I'm late, I can not make up the the time, you never get time back so I just need to face it and manage it the best way possible.
I don't know if this helps at all, I just know, actually learning, that being completely frustrated and frazzled interferes with good outcomes.
Thanks for your great blog.
Don't forget to check the clock before you go to bed.
Jennifer
Now come on girl, you're much better looking than the cat on this picture! Repeat after me Heather: "I'm human, and I'm allowed to make mistakes". Now, give yourself a hug :)
Much love...from a sheep that doesn't have it all together.
Heather, we all have those days. But I've always kind of chalked them up to God's devine intervention. He knows what's best for each of us. If you've ever prayed for patience you know what I'm talking about. Maybe you were supposed to learn a little today & maybe you were supposed to teach a little yourself today. I don't know but that's what I think. Thank you so much for sharing with us sometimes we all need to be reminded that we are all human. :] Lisa
Hi Heather...I really have no super-hero tips about being late or starting your day out wrong and how to recover from it,I'm just here to tell you your NOT alone girlfriend. I'm in "rush mode" as soon as my feet hit the floor every day. I use to get all upset with myself as I listen to my mouth go 90 & 100 with attitude. telling the kids..."hurry up we're late!" as if it was their fault. With God's help I put myself in check and have told myself not to sweat the small stuff. Just move with the day and keep in touch with God all day, I talk to him and "vent" my fristration,the kids think I'm going crazy but it really helps. It's like he's there with me telling me step by step how to recover. Don't beat yourself up....just go with the flow it will all work out. I will send you to a link that I really like for busy mom's like us. Check out: flylady.com it has some pretty cool tips. Take care!~K~
When I have a day like this, I just STOP right where I am, and REstart, asking God to help me REgroup for the REmainder of the day, knowing that tomorrow I get to start all over again! Holly
Jennifer, Holly, Kari, Lisa, Priscilla - Thanks for hearing my heart and for sharing yours. Grateful.
Post a Comment