Every day’s a school day
As anyone who knows me will know, I subscribe to the view that every day is a school day. There is always something to learn. Something new to pick up or reflect on during the course of the 24 hours. Today was no different.Read right to the end of the recipe and instructions before you start. I know that’s a schoolboy error and perhaps shouldn't qualify as my lesson for the day but it does. I made an assumption today about the involvement of green peppers in my meatballs and was found out. In the end I am happy to report all’s well that ends well but I know next time to read every word from my Delia bible before chopping, mixing and cooking. I am appropriately chastened.This slip up got me thinking. I take some significant effort each week and each day to plan out my days. I do this to make sure I make the most of the time I have and to ensure that work always comes second to life - to my wonderful life with my wonderful girls. Today was a good planning day. Big morning of work - early start, reports to review, status reports to write, emails to send, stuff to do. Calls booked in at 9am, 10am, 11am and 12am to break up the morning of desk work. Lunch out with my girls. A trip into the village to buy my Delia recipe ingredients. An afternoon of emails, Test Match Special and cooking. Time built in to cut the grass and play with Aoife. Jobs ticked off to free up tomorrow for golf. Hard to imagine a better day; a better way to mix the important with the necessary.I learnt some time ago - the hard way - about the importance of planning to get the balance right. It doesn't happen unless you make it happen - you take time to make it work. Leaving work life balance to its own devices only leaves the see saw crashing to the ground and you getting a sore backside. Cooking the Delia meatballs requires a plan; it requires a conscious effort; it requires focus to get the right stuff done at the right time; the right ingredients- quality ingredients - put together in the right order. A great metaphor. A great way of looking at the rest of your life. A great lesson to learn, even if it is the school holidays.#ben2b40