So the moon will be
transitioning into it’s latest full moon phase—and it will be both the last
full moon of the year, and the last full moon of the decade. There is now less
than three weeks left in the year—three weeks from today (Dec 11th)
will be New Years Day. So the next constellation that the moon will be going
through is going to be Gemini. So now it’s time to look back over the goals
that I set for the Taurus full moon and see how I did with each one.
So what were my goals for the Taurus full moon?
Meditating
nightly (yes, this is focusing on me a little—but if I keep myself in the right
mindset, I’m more polite and easier to be around other people).
Reaching
out to friends on-line (it’s a small step to start with, especially since there
are only a few people within town that I probably still talk to, and I think
better to start slow).
Figure out
when exactly my reboot break is going to start—that way I have an idea of when
I can refocus on my nutrition and fitness.
Above all remember: progress over perfection.
So how did I do with each one?
In terms of reaching out to friends on-line—this has been
slow going. This has been due mainly to trying to figure out the best way of
reaching out, also due to extending my work schedule another couple of weeks—I
hadn’t felt like being on the computer at night.
I’ve managed to meditate almost every night (and I’m getting
better at it with not having a full schedule the next day—i.e. if I want to
doze a little after the alarm goes off I can). I do feel better at night after
having spent anywhere from three to seven minutes meditating. Now I’m also
going to try to work that into my morning routine (meditate before getting up
to deal with the animals).
So my reboot break started this week (December 9th),
and I’ve managed one workout in addition to daily walks at Boomer Lake (to
practice my nature photography). I’ve realized that walks may not happen every
day (due mainly to weather and temperatures), so I’ll need to figure out the
best times for doing one (or possibly two) workouts—possibly in the morning
when I want a break from doing other things, and then again in the afternoon.
Nutrition will be a little slower (true there aren’t as many sweets at home as
there were at work—but there is the possibility of making cookies, muffins, and
so forth), but I’m going to focus on trying to do my best each day and not beat
myself up if I do slide a little.
So I managed to make an inroad with two of the three goals
that I set for the Taurus full moon. I’ve always been a quiet person, who
usually keeps different parts of my life in different “boxes” that usually
never overlap. I’ve realized that this is almost all done unconsciously, due in
part to my introverted nature—I don’t mind spending time with other people, but
I need time alone then to recharge.
So progress is being made (slow progress, but progress none
the less), and the baby steps will help make 2020 the best year yet.
Well July is officially over, and there are only 151 days
left in the year. I’m also about three days late in posting this as well. As
I’m writing this I realize that my birthday is in about seven weeks (give or
take a day or two), and then I will be looking down my last year of my
thirties. I think I’ve been a little better at my goals for July, though there are
areas that I still need to focus on (namely reading industry website new
articles and scientific articles).
There are only two months left in the third quarter of the
year, and while that is scary, depressing, and slightly invigorating—I’ve
realized that is just how time goes now—in an instant.
July goals were basically the same goals that I’ve had for
the past few months, including the goal of working on my “reboot break” plan.
The goals for July included:
At least 434,000
steps (14k/day)
Continuing with the
photography challenge (maybe introduce weekly themes)
Schedule my workouts
(cardio alternating with weight training). Decide on a reward system.
Read (or finish) at
least 3 non-fiction books
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keep a money log)
Be more active on
linkedin and in various groups on both linkedin and facebook
Personal and
professional development (e-courses, transition plan, and other stuff)
Work on my “reboot
break” plan
Read more on various
industry websites (FiercePharma, FierceBiotech, BioSpace) and make notes for a
weekly recap blog post
Try to read at least
one scientific article this month and write a summary for a blog/science post
So how did I do with each goal?
At least 434,000
steps (14k/day)
So I managed to meet and slightly surpass the 434,000-step
goal. I managed to get 450,489 steps during the month of July. I was actually
thinking that I’d be slightly below my goal step this month, considering how
hot it had been for awhile, and the fact that there were several days that I
didn’t get all my steps in; in fact there were eleven days that I was below
14,000 (some days just by a few hundred, other days by a few thousand). But
this also means that I’m on track for my yearly step goal as well. So far of
the year I’ve managed to get 3,154,283 steps. That means I’m well on the way of
reaching the end of the year goal of 5 million steps hopefully (as long as I
don’t sit on my rear too much on the weekends and I try to ensure that I reach
at least 14K Monday-Friday).
Continuing with the
photography challenge (maybe introduce weekly themes)
I’ve managed to keep with the photography challenge, and
I’ve introduced a theme once or twice during the month. Currently I’m doing
more wildlife/nature so I’ve realized that I’m going to have repetition on
themes/images. Though I am trying not to post the same type (for example if I
post on a particular bird more than once—I’ll try to have it flying and then
hopefully sitting in a tree) more than once or twice (max). Currently with the
weather, it’s too warm at lunch to take a walk and try my hand at doing
architecture photography on campus (this is a maybe for the fall once the
temperatures cool down a little).
Schedule my workouts
(cardio alternating with weight training). Decide on a reward system.
I’ve managed to do one or two workouts this month (that
weren’t just walking around campus getting my steps in). Part of my problem, is
that I try to do them at the end of the day (since I’m not a morning person,
and I barely give myself enough time as it is to get out of the house for
work)—and I’m usually hot, tired, and sweaty. I also don’t want to be putting
shoes and socks back on either (I go to work, and then come home in sandals).
So this is something I’m still working on—I have all the
programs at my fingertips; I just need to push myself to do it every day.
Read (or finish) at
least 3 non-fiction books
I’ve managed to finish the following:
“Outer
Order, Inner Calm: Declutter and organize to make more room for happiness” by
Gretchen Rubin
“Pause:
Harness the life-changing power of giving yourself a break” by Rachael O’Meara
Both of the books had to do with areas that I’m wanting to
focus on in the coming months: paring down on my stuff, declutter and getting
rid of things. This is because I’m going to be moving somewhere next year, and
I don’t want to end up in a small apartment surrounded by a whole bunch of
stuff that I may never use or wear.
The second book has to deal with my “reboot break” as this
author gave the time period a different name—a pause. So it has some other
questions/exercises that I need to also start working through.
I’ve realized that is one thing I do—I will read a
personal/professional development book all the way through and then go back and
answer the questions and do the exercises. This is mainly due to when and/or
where I’m reading at the time.
In terms of my reading challenge (at least 100 personal and/or
professional development books) for the 101 challenges in 1001 days: For 2019
I’ve read 17 books so far (which is roughly 2 ½ books a month). In 2018 I read
20 books off the list. The list initially started with about 70-80 books, and
has ballooned out to so far 283 books in total. So in total I’ve read 37/283
(or about 13% of the list).
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keep a money log)
I’ve been able to go a little over a week without spending
any money on campus this month. This was due in part to the weather—when it’s
in the triple digits, I didn’t feel like heading to the student union to get
chocolate (especially since it was going to be semi-melted by the time I got
back to the office). Since I’m aiming to do my reboot break/pause at the end of
the year—I’m going to be trying to avoid going to the union for candy, but if I
do—it will go on the debit card instead of the credit card.
Be more active on
linkedin and in various groups on both linkedin and facebook
I’ve been a little more active on linkedin and some of the
groups on facebook. I’ve posted my plans for doing my reboot break, and got
good/positive feedback. I know that I need to be more active, and will be
working on this over the next few months.
Personal and
professional development (e-courses, transition plan, and other stuff)
I haven’t worked on any of the e-courses, but looking back
at my transition plan I’ve realized that the big problem is that I have never
named a company (or companies) that I want to work for—all I stated was that I
would be a research scientist in a company by 2021. I’ve also realized that I
did the same thing with my 101 goals—I state the job title (more or less) and
that it would be in industry—not naming a company though. So this is something
I need to work on—determining where I want to end up.
Work on my “reboot
break” plan
So I’ve been working on my reboot break—it will start at the
latest right around Thanksgiving (or it could start a month or two
earlier—depends on when I give my two months notice). I’ve more or less planned
out the first two or three weeks (mainly getting my storage unit in order and start
getting rid of things) of the break. I have some ideas on how to blend travel
for both mental health and networking, but I need to flesh them out and then
start looking at the financial side of things.
Read more on various
industry websites (FiercePharma, FierceBiotech, BioSpace) and make notes for a
weekly recap blog post
I’ve looked at different articles, but I didn’t take any
notes for a weekly recap blog post. It isn’t that I’m not finding the articles
interesting, but when I try to skim through an article when I have a small
window of say five minutes between doing things—I don’t necessarily write
anything down on them. So, this is still an area that I need to work
on—building my business acumen.
Try to read at least
one scientific article this month and write a summary for a blog/science post
Again, this is something that I didn’t really do fully—I’ve
read the abstract or title of numerous articles (I get a weekly emails from
several journals), but I haven’t clicked on the link(s) to actually read the
article in full. Again, this is
something that I need to work on—getting back in the routine of reading scientific
articles.
So, other than the scientific/business readings I was able
to more or less meet my goals (or at least 2/3 of a goal). I think with
deciding to take a reboot break, I’ve cut down on some of my stress (probably
about a third of it), and since I know where other stress is coming from, once
I figure out a good coping mechanism (that doesn’t involve chocolate) I will be
in a much more better place mentally.
Therefore, it is time to look towards the rest of the month
of August and determine what I am going to focus on, therefore:
Goals for August will
include:
At least 434,000
steps
Continuing with the
photography challenge
Reading (or
finishing) at least 3 non-fiction books
Working on my “reboot
break”
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keeping a money log)
Get back into a
workout schedule (either a full program or a hybrid program between two
different programs).
Work on creating more
content for the blog (and potentially posts for linkedin).
Work on getting in a routine of reading business & scientific articles.
Basically, sticking with my motto: Progress over perfection. Everything takes time, but you have to be willing to put the time in–I know I haven’t put the time in for certain things (reading business/scientific articles is at the top of the list)–but I’ve acknowledge where I need to start making changes. That’s the first step in the right direction: acknowledging shortfalls and then working on a plan to correct them. So that is growth for the month.
So I’ve managed to decide on a start date for my reboot
break—it will start roughly right around the Thanksgiving holiday. Many may
think the timing is bad, but when you start a job right after the holidays, the
contract usually ends right before it the following year. I more or less gave
four months notice two weeks ago, so now I’m on a countdown clock. I just haven’t decided on a end date for the
reboot break—I know that it will at least stretch into the early part of 2020.
I’ve also decided that this is going to be a three-prong
reboot break: course-correction/career reinvention, emotional/mental healing,
and life enhancement. Currently I see all three as interconnecting—if I can get
back on a even keel in terms of mental/physical health, I will be able to
readjust my career trajectory and enhance my life at the same time.
I’m planning on spending a good part of early December
trying to get my storage unit in better order; I started it last year right
after the Fourth of July holiday, but haven’t had the time to repack anything
that needs it. I’m hoping that in addition to repacking the boxes that have
fallen apart, I will go through others and start paring down my belongings.
I’ve realized that I will probably always be living in an
apartment (or condo)—I don’t really see myself trying to buy a house anytime
soon. Therefore, I need to make sure that I’m not taking a lot of stuff with me
that will just clutter up the space.
I’m also planning on working on my mental and physical
health as well. By the time the reboot break starts, I will hopefully have
finished a second round of Country Heat, the first round of Yoga Booty Ballet:
Abs and Butt, and maybe be working through a second round of LIIFT4. In
addition, I will start meditating twice a day (morning and evening), and
writing more in my journal. By removing myself from a semi-toxic work
environment, hopefully within a few weeks some of the mental cobwebs will be
gone.
My traveling will probably be done during the springtime—at least one trip somewhere for enjoyment, and then one or two for networking/job hunting. I have a couple of ideas percolating for the networking trips—which one(s) I go with, will depend on the time of year, and how much groundwork I’ve done via online networking.
In addition, I have so many different e-courses that I’ve
bought over the past few years, that I will finally have the time to sit down
and actually go through and learn something that I can possibly use moving
forward. I won’t feel guilty listening to videos taking notes on things
unrelated to my current position. If I can also relearn a foreign language
(such as Spanish or German)—it will allow me to travel more with a little more
confidence.
So a recap:
Reboot break is starting end of November 2019. During the
month of December I plan on getting my storage unit in order, starting to work
through more of the e-courses, declutter things in my bedroom, and hopefully
settled into a exercise/meditation routine as well (getting my mental and
physical health back on track).
I will also then be planning out what I hope to accomplish
during the first few months of 2020 as well. Those plans will be posted in an
update, once I’ve posted pictures of the cleaned/organized storage unit and
decluttered bedroom.
Well we’re a little over halfway through July already. The
moon is moving into Capricorn today (or maybe it was yesterday or tomorrow for
you). I’ve realized that while I can make lists—trying to make the master list
is one of the things that almost put me into an anxiety attack. So, I’m going
to try to do one this weekend—but I will call it a brain dump (and see how I
emotionally process that).
So, since it is the eve of the full moon, one can look at
“Moonology: working with the magic of lunar cycles” by Yasmin Boland and find a
series of questions that you can ask yourself during this time:
Have I been ambitious to the point of ruthlessness?
Have I been obsessed with work to the detriment of my
personal life?
Have I been hard-headed, hard-nosed, or just too hard on
others?
Have I allowed my head to overrule my heart?
Have I been planning my life enough? Or too much?
So if I were to answer the above questions (again, numbering
them 1-5), I think my answers would be as following:
No,
I don’t think that I’ve been ambitious to the point of ruthlessness. I’m pretty
sure that people will tell you that I’m not ambitious enough, and that I
currently go with the flow. I know that to make it in industry (at least move
up the ladder or between companies, and to have good mentors), I need to become
a little more ambitious that what I currently am. I also know that currently
I’m not in a good mental space to really care of how ambitious (or not) others
perceive me to be—there are too many other problems in the world, and I don’t
rate this very high on that list.
I
don’t think I’ve been obsessed with work to the detriment of my personal life.
That is one nice thing about having to clock my forty hours—even if I wanted to
go over on the weekends—it probably wouldn’t be approved, therefore why bother.
I will also be the first to admit that I really don’t have much of a life (I
feel like I’m currently in the middle of a midlife crisis, with trying to
figure out what the next career stage is going to be). Currently in terms of my
personal life—I’m my own worse enemy here.
No,
I don’t think I’ve been hard on others. I really don’t interact with that many
people in my current position, and I’m also the bottom of the totem pole in
terms of hierarchy within my little unit anyway.
Yes,
I have let my head overrule my heart—while I really want to adopt a puppy, I’ve
realized that I should wait until I either have moved (or am closer to moving),
so that the puppy will be more or less totally raised in an apartment. I feel
like it would be easier than having one that is used to the yard, and then
having to all of a sudden be satisfied with two or three walks a day on a
leash.
Here,
I actually think that I haven’t been planning my life enough. I’ve always been
more to go with the current or flow and not try to battle my way upstream. This
however has resulted in me taking several different positions that I probably
should have passed on. I’m now trying to plan my life a little more—but going
back to question 1, I have to try to do it in a way that it doesn’t induce an
anxiety or panic attack.
So the Capricorn full moon is also going to be traveling
through my third house (or my communications zone). This is the zone that deals
with basically the people you see more or less on a day-to-day basis: friends,
coworkers, and siblings. Also it reminds us that there is a to-do list that
items that needed to be taken care of. Luckily, I can’t think of any major
disagreements that I’ve had lately—I know that not everyone agrees with my idea
of a “reboot break” but I’m going to do it anyway—I’ve decided that since I’m
going to be 39 this year, it’s about damn time that I start putting myself
first a few times.
So my goals for the Capricorn full moon period will include:
Continuing to work on my drafting my “reboot break” and also
working on my transition plan to move from academia to industry.
Read (finish) at least one personal or professional
development book.
Finish my second round of Country Heat.
Slow steps towards progress are better than trying to make
running jumps and ending up falling behind on everything. I’m slowly figuring
out ways of coping with my anxiety and stress, and as I continue to find better
solutions to the triggers of both—I’ll continue to make more and more progress
towards all of my other goals.
So I’ve decided that I’m going to try to switch things up a little and start putting in some inspirational quotes and ideas into my photography challenge as well.
This one (and several others) stood out to me tonight. One reason–is that I am trying to start planning my reboot break, and part of the planning period is to put down as many different things that I would like to get accomplished during my break.
One thing I’ve noticed (as I’m trying to pay more attention to the little voices) is that when I do daydream–it usually how I want to get done with things at work, that way I can be outside in the nice weather. I think that I need to try to fix my daydreams–to where they’re about where I would like to be, and not about where I’m at.
Though when I do daydream about being away from the lab–it’s traveling, writing, nature photography, cooking, crafts, reading, being outdoors, and basically enjoying myself. This is telling me that I should be looking for a job that gives enough vacation time so that I can travel at least once a year (as long as I have pets–I doubt I’ll travel more than maybe three or four weeks out of the year–until I figure out a way to travel with them), and one that I can leave work at work.
I know the type of balance I want in my job, I just need to figure out which scientific path(s) to start investigating to see which one(s) are the best match.
I know that this has gone on a slightly detour from the original–daydreaming is preparation–but that is how my mind is currently moving. It is jumping from one thing to another (sometimes to something that isn’t even there or real).
I had tried to write down five or ten ideas a day (I managed about a week), and then I felt like I couldn’t think of anything else. I’m going to try to do a brain dump this weekend (a probable post coming on that), and once I’ve done that–hopefully get back into a habit of writing at least two to three ideas a day. Then I will pick one and try to flesh it out into a post or even it’s own page (depending on the topic).
So tomorrow, the moon moves into it’s full moon phase for
June. We’re a little over halfway through the month, and there are only two
weeks left before we’re through the first half of the year. Therefore it’s time
to look back on the goals that I set during the May full moon, and see which
ones I managed to work into my schedule and which ones I forgot about.
The goals for the May Scorpio full moon included:
Getting
back on track with my fitness and nutrition.
Working on
my transition and “reboot break” plans.
Trying to
meditate and do a daily tarot/oracle card reading.
In terms of the fitness and nutrition goal—I’m trying to
make sure that I hit (and hopefully surpass) my step goal at least five out of
seven days. I’m also trying to do at least one walk around Boomer Lake on the
weekend (depending on the weather). I’ve realized that my mental health isn’t
the greatest right now—when I fall into my depression funks, I’m never to the
point of hurting myself—I just get to the point where I don’t care about things
(working out and eating properly usually tanks first).
Therefore I’m happy to note that I have managed to probably
lose about 2-4 pounds over the last month (I’m not sure of the exact number
since I don’t weigh myself constantly—I’m just stepping on the scale currently
to actually figure out how much the puppy is gaining weekly). I’m also cutting
back on the sweets that I get on campus (last week I only went and got them one
day, and the week before that it was only two days—so I’m slowly cutting back
on that as well).
In terms of my transition and “reboot break” plans—the
reboot break will be happening before the end of the year (especially since I
now realize how close to complete burnout I’m getting), and may actually happen
before the end of summer. I know people will scratch their heads at the idea of
quitting a job without another lined up (especially since that means that you
don’t get unemployment—but I think it will work out better this way—I’m not on
someone else’s timeframe for finding a new job). My only potential worry is
that my parents may charge rent (and how much).
The reboot break is needed, especially since I’m been
thinking about just packing some clothes, my laptop, camera, e-book reader,
phone, & chargers and flying off somewhere without really letting anyone
know about the plans. I’ve never taken the time before to try and really focus
on what I want to do with my life—I’ve just gone (for the most part) a straight
path of public school to college (undergraduate degree to graduate degree) to
work (academic post-doc to academic post-doc to staff position 1 to staff
position 2). I love science, but I really need to figure out what I want to do
in relation to both science and my other passions as well.
In terms of meditating daily and also doing a daily
tarot/oracle card reading—I’ve been probably an even fifty to sixty percent of
the time. I know where the inconsistency in regards to this goal is coming from—my
blah mood. I usually can meditate nightly, but doing the card reading is
something that I just can’t force myself to do (and I’ve also realized that I’ve
lost several followers on instagram because of it as well). I’m hoping to get
back into the grove of doing nightly readings (I don’t do them in the morning—mainly
because I don’t want to get up any earlier than what I’m already doing), and
posting them to social media.
So it wasn’t one hundred percent on the goals this past month—but at least I was making slow forward progression with each one. I know where I need to try to focus first—my mental and physical health (and if you are struggling—know that you aren’t alone, and if you need to see professional help—please do so (personally I’m stubborn and not really one to talk about their feelings and thoughts with others)). I know that when I get those two aspects of my life back on steady ground, everything else should hopefully also start falling into place.
Pretty soon it’s going to be time for me to step out of my comfort zone in order to figure out what I want to do with my life. As much as I want time to slow down, I know that it isn’t going to—which means I need to start actually trying to live my life for myself, and not staying in the shadow of others.
So we’re officially entered June, and within a blink of an
eye—the year will be half over. May has been helpful slightly in that I’ve
realized that I need to do a “reboot break” some time soon. One of the books I
finished reading this month was “Reboot your life: energize your career and
life by taking a break” by Catherine Allen, Nancy Bearg, Rita Foley, and Jaye
Smith. It showed me that sometimes “quitting” something is the best thing to
do, in order to figure out what it is you really want to do. So sometime
between now and November (when my job contract is up), I’ll be starting my
reboot break (more on this in additional posts).
But while I’ve realized that I need to take a “reboot
break”, the things I realized over the course of April still hold true: 1) I
still have no idea of what I want to do job wise (though I have a couple of
ideas). I also realize that this statement can be taken literally, and it isn’t
meant to be—all I mean is that I haven’t decided which direction I want to go
as a “specialist” and which direction I want to go as a “generalist”. 2) I
still have yet to find a good balance between things—I seem to be either all in
or barely in at all; and 3) I really need to work on getting the anxiety and
stress under control.
But as we head into the final month of the second quarter,
it is time to reflect back on the goals that I set for May. Again, as I’ve
mentioned previously—the goals are going to be staying the same (more or
less)—that way I can continue trying to reach them monthly, and once they
become an habit—then I can switch them up.
So the goals for May included:
At least 434,000
steps (again breaking down to 14K/day)
Continue with the
photography challenge
Start back on a
workout schedule (potentially alternating between weight training &
cardio).
Read (or finish) at
least 3 non-fiction books
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keep a money log)
Continue to try to
interact more on linkedin
Continue working
through the various e-courses/groups and transition plan (making notes, narrowing
down on cities, looking into companies, and figuring out my superpower
trifecta)
Read at least one
article on FiercePharma and/or FierceBiotech (weekly and work up to daily) and
make notes so that I can do a blog post (or weekly recap of what I’ve read).
Read at least one
scientific article a week and write a 500-word summary for a potential
blog/science post.
So how did I do with each one?
At least 434,000
steps (again breaking down to 14K/day)
I managed
to surpass my goal of at least 434,000 steps (even though there were several
days that I was below both 14K and at times 5K). My final step total for the
month was 466,661 steps. This brings my yearly total to 2,240,365 steps. In terms of my yearly goal of 5 million steps,
I’m 2,759,635 steps away and there are still 201 days left in the year. That
means I only need 13,730 steps per day for the rest of the year to reach 5
million.
In terms of my 1001-day goal of
reaching 14,014,000 steps that I had originally set last year (which would end
approximately Sept 28 2020)—I’m at 7,519,336 steps. There are ~472 days left in
my first 1001-day challenge. I’m 6,494,664 steps away (which breaks down to
again 13,760 steps a day to reach the goal). So I’m good on this goal as well.
Continue with the
photography challenge
I had to
post a couple of days together (or several on the same day) due to the wifi
being down in the evening at home. I had to post four days worth over two days
(instead of doing three at once—I did two on Friday, and then two on Saturday
morning). I’ve managed to keep up with the challenge (even with having to do
catch-up posts). This only happened twice in the month (one long post for days
80-82; and then for the end of the month and beginning of June).
Start back on a
workout schedule (potentially alternating between weight training &
cardio).
I will admit that other than
walking and trying to get my steps in daily I haven’t been doing a real workout
program for the month of May. This is one of the things that has really made me
stop and look at how far I’ve let both my mental and physical health slide the
past couple of months.
Read (or finish) at
least 3 non-fiction books
I actually managed to finish four
books this month, and I’ve written a book review for one of those books (“Reboot
your life: energize your career and life by taking a break”). The one by Devin
Thorp was okay—since I don’t have kids, own a house, or and things like that,
there were several chapters that didn’t pertain to my life.
The two that were basically career/networking
guides just helped to remind me that I do need to try to spend more time
networking and figuring out what I want to do with life (there are still
questions in one of the books that I need to go back and continue working
through).
So the full titles and authors of
the books that I finished reading during May were:
925 ideas to help you save money, get out of debt, and
retire a millionaire by Devin Thorp
Reboot your life: energize your career and life by taking a
break by Catherine Allen, Nancy Bearg, Rita Foley, and Jaye Smith
Next Gen PhD: A Guide to Career Paths in Science by Melanie
V Sinche
Navigating the path to industry: A hiring managers advice to
academics looking for a job in industry by M.R. Nelson
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keep a money log)
I managed
to go maybe two days a week without spending money on campus this month. I’ve
realized that part of my problem is that I turn to sweets to help deal with irritations
at work (also it’s one of my excuses for getting my steps in). I’m hoping that
I will do better during the month of June (especially if I figure out how to “forget”
my wallet at home a few days a week).
Continue to try to
interact more on linkedin
This is something that is up and
down throughout the month. Mentally I feel drained in the evenings and weekends—therefore
I focus on things that help me mentally regroup before the next week.
Interacting on linkedin right now isn’t one of those things. Again—I know where
my problem is, I just need to figure out the best method for starting to deal
with it in a way that isn’t going to backfire on me in long run.
Continue working
through the various e-courses/groups and transition plan (making notes,
narrowing down on cities, looking into companies, and figuring out my
superpower trifecta)
I’m slowly working on things—but
since I’ve realized I need a “reboot break” I’m trying to figure out how to fit
that into the whole plan as well. I want to mentally recharge and find my
footing again—but at the same time I don’t want to be wasting time that I could
be spending on job searching either.
Read at least one
article on FiercePharma and/or FierceBiotech (weekly and work up to daily) and
make notes so that I can do a blog post (or weekly recap of what I’ve read).
Have totally
forgotten about doing this during the month—my bad. Need to get the pages to
almost pop up as my home pages to remind me to scroll through things and start “acting”
like an adult.
Read at least one
scientific article a week and write a 500-word summary for a potential
blog/science post.
I’ve read
the abstract of several different papers over the month—but that has been as
far as I’ve gotten on this one. It’s hard to do, when you’ve realized how close
to total burnout you’ve gotten.
So the major thing I managed to accomplish this month was
realizing that I really need to take time for myself—get my health (mental and
physical) back on track, take care of a few other things, and then also focus
on my job search. While I know that there are people who will disagree with me—currently
I’d rather not have a job and be able to sleep well at night, then have a job,
sleep miserably, and not enjoy what I’m having to spend 40 hours a week doing.
I’m also 39 and just realizing that it’s time to sit and really try to figure
out what I want to do with the second half of my life (though I’m sure I’ll
live past 78).
Therefore the goals for June include:
At least 420,000
steps (14K/day)
Reading (or
finishing) at least 3 non-fiction books
Continuing with the
photography challenge
Working on planning my
“reboot break”
Aim for two weeks of
no spending (keep a money log)
Continue to try to
interact more on linkedin
Start back on a
workout schedule (potentially alternating between weight training &
cardio).
Continue working
through the various e-courses/groups and transition plan (making notes,
narrowing down on cities, looking into companies, and figuring out my superpower
trifecta)
Read at least one
article on FiercePharma and/or FierceBiotech (weekly and work up to daily) and
make notes so that I can do a blog post (or weekly recap of what I’ve read).
Read at least one
scientific article a week and write a 500-word summary for a potential
blog/science post.
I’ve added in one additional goal—but I think that could be the goal that really gets me to focus more on the others in the second half of the year. Because I need to keep reminding myself—that every day is a new start, and when taking everything into account, we only live once. I’ve put work and being in a lab center in my life longer than I should have–now I need to pull it back and see what else could benefit with being the center of my life for awhile.
**Disclaimer** I am not in the healthcare profession, if you
are in need of medical (or mental) help—please see a licensed healthcare
professional. The following are just my thoughts, feelings, and ways I think I
can deal with my issues. Again—if you have issues, please see a licensed
healthcare professional**.
Spent part of the weekend doing some serious reflection, and
have come to the realization of several things:
I need to
get better at time management (especially on the weekends, when I really don’t
have my day structured that much). I realize that I could have the traffic
coming to the blog higher, if I actually got posts written and posted on a
regular schedule—instead of the semi-regular, sporadic schedule I’ve been
doing.
Also having
better time management, means that I could probably also be looking at
different career tracks that are in the free-lancing and consulting areas
(instead of looking for the just general nine-to-five jobs).
I would
also have the time to dedicate to crafts and other projects or things I want to
get accomplished.
I have also
become my own worse enemy in terms of getting into the best shape of my life. I
have allowed myself to use just about any excuse for not doing my workouts in
the evenings, and before anyone comments that I could be doing them in the
mornings—right now I’m barely getting my seven and a half hours of sleep, and
therefore I’m not sacrificing that just to get a workout in first thing in the
morning.
This one is
also tied into the time management need as well—there are only so many hours in
the evening before heading to bed, that I probably could be making better use
of them, then how I’ve been using them.
I also need
to find better ways of dealing with my stress and anxiety. I have found myself
going to the little market on campus and buying several different sweets and
candy bars (that will either last me the day, or a couple of days depending on
my stress/anxiety levels).
The stress
and anxiety have been issues that I really should have been dealing with years
ago. I have a pretty good idea where a lot of my anxiety issues (tests,
driving, and to some extent social) have come from (childhood can suck at
times), and the stress is due in part to internalizing how I feel instead of
just letting it out (probably would have had more issues in school if I vocalized
how I felt at times). So those two issues have probably lead to some health
issues (indigestion and upset stomach) that I also need to find better ways of
dealing with (then taking over the counter medications and trying to ignore
them).
So how can I start to address and manage these issues (I
won’t say overcome and get rid of—because I know that having that mindset can
set me up for failure)?
In terms of time management—I need to ask myself what
tasks/items am I doing (or can I be doing) that are (or can be considered)
beneficial for the future me.
Also I probably should look into the different apps/web
pages that allow you to block certain pages to help increase productivity (I
know that I do spend way to much time on social media).
Also I should ask myself—what tasks am I doing during the
day at work that are actually going to be helping me move forward (and not
actually helping move someone else forward). This might be a little more
problematic, as I’m sure that there are at least one or two people that won’t
be happy if I start to figure out other things to do that I deem more important
then they do. In other words—I really need to start working on my
individualized development plan (or my reboot break/transition plan).
In terms of getting back on track in terms of fitness and
nutrition—there are several things that I can do:
Have my
bedroom clean and the workout equipment off to the side. That way once I’m done
with a few evening chores, I can put on my workout clothes, stream the workout
program and get it done.
Not compare
myself to others. This has been a hard one for me (especially the last few
years that I’ve gained the weight back and the negative mind set).
If I need
to take a walk at lunch (due to stress or anxiety), I will try to have my small
digital camera on me so that I can practice my photography skills (instead of
going to spend money on candy).
Also when
needed—take my journal and go for a walk; then find a quiet area where I can
sit and reflect on what is potentially causing my anxiety or stress to occur.
Sit and try to write for at least five to ten minutes and then head back to the
lab. Hopefully this will help me get a handle on the stress and anxiety.
Get back
into the habit of trying to mediate for at least three to five minutes every
night before reading.
Try to pack
my shakeology (and supplements) to take to work and have it as either part of
lunch or a snack. This will help me work back up to having it as part of
breakfast.
So I know what I need to do in order to get myself back on
the correct trail—patch some things that weren’t working, and rework some other
things. I’m now going to picture my journey moving forward in one of two ways:
I’m hiking and I will need to look for things to help me on my way; or I’m on a
boat at sea, and I need to find unique ways of patching little holes in the
boat to ensure that I can make it to the next island/land formation.
So today marks the full moon for May, and it is actually
passing through the Scorpio constellation. So I guess that I will be doing a
double Scorpio goal period (since that is how I treated last month).
The questions that I would need to be answering are the same
ones that I answered last month, but I think that my answers now are actually
slightly different from what I had written last month.
So looking at the book “Moonlogy: Working with the magic of
the lunar cycles” by Yasmin Boland, for questions that one should be asking
themselves during this time the questions would include:
Have I been jealous, vengeful, suspicious, or otherwise
behaved toxically?
Have I been living out of fear rather than joy?
Have I been brooding and dark: focusing on the negative
rather than the positive?
Have I been cruel or cunning?
Am I having the sex I need to feel good about myself? (Of
course, some people need no sex at all!)
If I were to number the questions one to five, my answers
would be:
This
depends on what how one defines toxic—towards other people or toward oneself. I
don’t think that I’ve been acting toxically towards other people—I try to be
polite and cordial at work and at home (yes, I probably have unfriendly
thoughts towards others, but I try not to act on them). Have I been acting
toxically towards myself—I’d have to say unfortunately yes I have been. I know
that I should be eating better and working out more, but I haven’t been and
I’ve been allowing myself to use really lame things as excuses for both bad
behaviors.
Depending
on how you would define both terms—but yes, I have been living out of fear
rather than joy quite often. I know that I should probably just quit my job so
that I have more time to focus on job searching (namely networking and figuring
out the exact path that I want to pursue), but I haven’t since most people
usually try to have the replacement job lined up before they quit their current
one.
With
the way the world is currently going, it is sometimes hard not to dwell on the
negative. I do try to look for the positive daily, though sometimes this is
hard to do (especially when one is in a job that is less than fulfilling).
No
I haven’t been cruel or cunning—that takes too much work and effort. Currently
I’m more apathetic and at times I really don’t care too much about what is
going on—I just try to get through the day without losing my temper or my cool.
This answer hasn’t changed at all from last month.
As
the second statement says—Some people need no sex at all to feel good about themselves.
I’m in that boat currently—I have no time for a relationship (especially since
I’m planning on leaving the state & I really don’t have the time to try to
do a long distance relationship), and I’m not really the type for just having
random hookups. Again, this answer hasn’t changed from last month either.
So this month marks the moon moving into Scorpio, and
actually moving into my first house as well—this is our image zone. This is
where one can reflect on both one’s personal and professional lives, and
determine if there are things that could be worked on and changed. Getting to
go through this zone “twice” is helpful, as I need the reminder that I should
be trying to put myself first every so often, and that there really aren’t that
many people looking out for my best interests (job wise and personal life
wise).
So goals for this full moon period are going to be slightly
similar to the ones from last month and include:
Getting my fitness and nutrition routine back on track (I haven’t done a full week’s worth of workouts in over a month, and I need to start cutting back on the sweets, this will also help me save money as well), but also remember that I only need to try to be better than yesterday—progress over perfection. Hopefully I can figure out better ways of handling stress than buying sweets on campus, and since the cable/wifi problem has been fixed I should be able to stream my workouts in the evenings.
Professionally
I need to continue working on both my professional transition plan, and my
“reboot break” plan. I’m also going to try to finish reading “The Renaissance
Soul: How to make your passions your life” by Margaret Lobensteine &
“Designing Your Life: How to build a well-lived joyful life” by Bill Burnett
& Dave Evans. Having finished reading “Reboot Your Life: Energize your
career & life by taking a break” by Catherine Allen, Nancy Bearge, Rita
Foley, & Jaye Smith I’ve realized that taking a break is needed and needs
to happen before the end of the calendar year.
Continue
trying to work on a daily meditation and tarot/oracle card reading. I’ve
noticed that these do help with trying to wind down at the end of the day, and
I sometimes sleep better after having done them.
So the goals are similar, but a little different from last
month—sometimes the major difference is just acknowledging that we are in a
self-destruction loop and trying to step off that track just a little to
readjust ourselves and get back to the healthier habits.
