Work Hard, Play Hard

Work Hard, Play Hard

Work hard, play hard.  In life, you have to be balanced.  It's often easier said than done.  I mean...how do you know what is the perfect balance?  It can change from day to day or month to month.  My balance changes daily because I may think in the morning I'm going to only work a normal shift and then I can do something I enjoy after work.  Then, a new assignment may pop up that needs to be resolved quickly.  It may take a while to complete and then the day may go by quickly.  All of a sudden, you're done with the new task but you haven't accomplished anything that you had planned originally.

There were times when I spent more time playing instead of working.  It was my choice to work hard instead of play hard.  Oh, it was great and a lot of fun!  I did whatever I wanted with no worries about the consequences.  The funny thing about consequences is that even when you don't worry about them, they are still there.  Because of my choice, I fell behind in accomplishing my goals during that time.  Sure, I was happy in the present, but it wasn't good for my future.  Time moves faster than you think.

There were also times when I just worked too hard.  I couldn't enjoy life; work consumed me.  I may have had success at work during this time but I was over stressed without an outlet.  "Sometimes when you win, you actually lose or tie." (Rosie Perez, White Men Can't Jump)

I survived both scenarios but only because I or people around me noticed that I was veering too much one way or the other.  Without the intervention, I hate to imagine what would have happened.  Finding the proper balance is the key.  Too much of anything is unhealthy.  Even today, I'm still learning when to work hard and when to play hard.