VEXED IN THE CITY
SOLVING YOUR WORK-LIFE PROBLEMS
DEAR VEXED: I am completely stressed out. I made three New Year’s resolutions: to diet, not to drink in January, and to work harder. I’ve slipped on all of them already, particularly the diet. The more I try to be good, the harder it is. I feel like crying. Bob, 28, wealth management adviser
I KNOW the feeling. And I can tell you exactly what you’re doing wrong. It’s making New Year’s resolutions in the first place – they just beg you to fail and failure isn’t a helpful concept when it comes to self-improvement. What makes it work is a genuine desire to improve – from this comes real will.
Your goals, however, are normal and healthy in themselves. But each one is a major task. Pledging to fulfil three at once is not only too much to ask of anyone bar the most hardened masochists, it’s also just too confusing. The brain works best when focussed – it’s well known that when you are faced with a million things at work it can be hard to start on one.
Zone in on the booze for January. Relieving yourself of the pressure to transform your body and your career while you give your liver a break (no small task) will make you happier and more efficient. I suspect that you’ll start feeling better and sleeping better, and your work will naturally improve. Giving up booze does wonders for creativity.
In February, tackle your diet. Once the pounds have started to fall off, you set yourself a challenge at work. This one-at-a-time approach is key to the success of any of your resolutions. And next New Year’s, think twice about making any booze-addled pledges. Got a problem?Email [email protected].