Friday, December 14, 2012

Steps to Recovery

I'm not referring to another 12-step treatment program. No, I'm talking about the steps to recovering from a multi-grant deadline. Those deadlines are exhausting. Long hours, too much stress, not enough sleep - it can ruin even the best attitude.

I had one of those deadlines recently.  It left me exhausted and definitely in need of recovery.  Here are my steps for multi-grant recovery:

Step 1:  Walk away - Don't clean up your desk. Don't start the next project right away.  Just walk away.  Give yourself the time and space you'll need to recover.

Step 2: Reassess your health - If you haven't been eating well, start eating well.  Drink some water. Get some exercise.  You have probably been chained to your desk.  You need to move a bit, but first.....

Step 3: Get some sleep  - Remember what uninterrupted sleep is? Do you remember your last full night of sleep?  It was about a month ago, most likely.

Step 4: Reintroduce yourself to your family.  If they don't recognize you, don't be alarmed.  That is perfectly normal. As soon as you recapture control of the TV remote, it will come back to them.

Step 5: If you can, don't even think about work for a day or two (or more) - Give yourself a complete rest. Your brain has been working harder than any other part of you.  A full rest means giving yourself a break from thinking about grant stuff.

Step 6: Do something that you really enjoy.  If you like to read trashy romance novels, do it.  If you like to shop, go for it (within reason, of course). Give yourself the gift of time just for you since you gave up so much of your time recently to your work.

The point here is that some recovery is really necessary after an intense project. Remember, your career is a marathon, not a sprint.

What do you do to recovery after an intense deadline?

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About Creative Resources & Research

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Woodland, CA, United States
Creative Resources and Research is a consulting firm specializing in grant writing, grant seeking, program evaluation and professional development training. We have worked with hundreds of clients including public and private schools, school districts, universities, non-profit organizations, and social service agencies throughout California, securing over $155 million from federal, state and private foundation funding sources over the past decade. Our primary grant writers and program evaluators have over 50 years of combined experience in the education and social services fields. At CRR we prefer a personal approach to the clients we work with; by developing long term relationships, we are better suited to match client’s needs with available funding sources. We provide a variety of services to help assist you, including grant writing, evaluation consulting, professional development opportunities, and workshops.