Minimize Your Possessions to Foster Freedom and Permanent Vacation

bahamas

Freedom and eventual permanent vacation requires minimizing possessions to avoid being a slave to them. It was summer 2009 and the school year ended. I put all of my possessions in storage and decided that I needed to spend the summer traveling and being free. From June to August, I got my first taste of [...]

Moving the Rear-view Mirror: My Life’s Symbol of Transition

carseat

I’ve spent 3 years sharing custody of my 4 year old daughter. My work-life balance is structured so that when I spend time with her, it is quality time. To do this, our time apart has to be meticulously planned so responsibility doesn’t bleed too much into our time together. Every time I pick up [...]

Learn How to Be a Beginner

beginner

A speaker I listened to recently talked about the most important quality he looks for when hiring. He only hires people that know how to be a beginner. I really identified with the message because I’ve always talked about this quality without labeling it as such. Over the years, I have made it a habit [...]

Work-Life Balance Tip: Get in the Habit of Creating New Habits

vitamins

I’ve failed at changing habits in my life so many times. But, what I’ve found is that I succeed when I only try to make one change at a time. It takes 30 days of consistent change to develop a new habit. Therefore, I’ve learned to change only one part of my life at a [...]

The Dentist Chair was the Most Relaxing Part of my Day

joshwalk

With the hustle bustle of the school at this time of year – I did not take more than 10 minutes to eat and sit during the school day. However, i didn’t need more than that because I had a 3:20 dentist appointment! I would have all the rest and relaxation I needed in the [...]

Work Life Balance Tip: Don’t Let Storm Clouds Prevent Exercise

stormcloud

Remember being a kid when it took serious weather to get you outside? Today after work, I went to the store first to pick up dinner and on my way home I planned to go on my walk. Since I live on the side of a mountain, my walk could almost be considered a hike. [...]

Work-Life Balance Tip: How 1 Night in a Hotel Room Rejuvenates Body and Mind

hotelview

An early Saturday morning drive, activity, and hotel room stay helped me with total rejuvenation. The hotel room was near water with a balcony. We enjoyed a view of boats in a bay with a city backdrop. To help with work-life balance, it is important to invest in simple pleasures that break the routine. Leaving [...]

Eating 18 Cookies in 15 Minutes: Unhealthy Stress Relief

cookies_150

Just one day after posting both healthy and unhealthy stress reduction methods, I found myself at Raley’s adding a package of cookies to my basket. My intentions were good.  I would eat my naan pizza and have a few cookies afterward – no big deal.  I get home after a long and very stressful day [...]

Tips to Living and Sleeping with Stress

bhh

I know a little something about stress. As the superintendent, principal, and teacher at our little school – I have my fair share of stressful days and situations. However, handling stress well is vital in my line of work. Though the following methods for dealing with stress may work to some degree, be sure to [...]

Life Balance: My 60-Hour Work Week Schedule

gcis

The way my schedule is organized, I have days that are mostly dedicated to working and others dedicated to life responsibilities. For example, Monday through Thursday are completely dedicated to work. I work for the school from 7ish to 4-5ish (sometimes far later). After that, I eat and exercise. Then, I move onto school work [...]

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Minimize Your Possessions to Foster Freedom and Permanent Vacation

Filed under Lifestyle Design, Personal Development by joshpeete on March 19, 2012 at 10:44 pm {one comment}

Freedom and eventual permanent vacation requires minimizing possessions to avoid being a slave to them.

It was summer 2009 and the school year ended. I put all of my possessions in storage and decided that I needed to spend the summer traveling and being free. From June to August, I got my first taste of permanent vacation and loved the feeling. Possessions were taken care of, I was mobile on a laptop and an iPhone, and started automating my life to not worry about necessities. I continued being paid throughout the summer because I took my 10 month pay in 12 checks as most educators can do. In this way, I felt I could live the dream and felt paid to do so.

I spent my time in Chicago, DC, Bahamas / Florida, all over California – enjoying location independence. I couldn’t have enjoyed so many experiences being tied to possessions and the responsibility they foster.

After that summer, I moved to Ashland, Oregon and only brought the bare minimum out of storage with me. I started with one car load. Though I had a huge storage unit full of stuff, I wanted to learn what I really needed to live.

Over the course of the next school year, I learned that two car loads of possessions was about perfect. As a musician, instruments were a necessity and took up space. I found the few possessions I used regularly were my computer, mountain bike, and clothes.

It was towards the end of that school year when I was hired to be the administrator of the school and I moved back across the border.

I moved into a small place with the hopes of continuing my minimalist lifestyle. My girlfriend helped me clean out my storage unit and throw tons of stuff away. Also, my house being small has helped keep possessions to a minimum.

Being a minimalist and learning to rid yourself of needless possessions helps to cut the rope that drags you.

To learn more permanent vacation, download my free permanent vacation flowchart.

Moving the Rear-view Mirror: My Life’s Symbol of Transition

Filed under Personal Development, Time Management, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on March 13, 2012 at 2:13 am {one comment}

I’ve spent 3 years sharing custody of my 4 year old daughter. My work-life balance is structured so that when I spend time with her, it is quality time. To do this, our time apart has to be meticulously planned so responsibility doesn’t bleed too much into our time together. Every time I pick up my daughter, I move the rear-view mirror down so I can monitor her in the backseat. This is a habit but also how I like to travel around with my daughter. The drive wouldn’t feel right if we couldn’t see each other in the mirror. It is a link – a connection. We spend time singing, telling stories (she has been trained to tell them with characters, dialog, a problem, etc…), and playing games. When the mirror is tilted down, I’m 100% dad.

Our time together begins and ends – only to begin again after cramming a lot of responsibility into a window of time. After dropping her off to be with her mom, I enter this window of between time. My focus shifts to my purposeful career as a school superintendent, principal, and teacher. I work on other relationships important to me and finish final duties for my university. Somewhere in there, I sneak in me time and hobbies. The shift to this between time is symbolized by moving the rear-view mirror back into its original position.

Sometimes I can’t do it right away. I like to look back at an empty child car seat until I’m ready to embrace the transition.

Think about the symbols in your life… What do they represent?

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Learn How to Be a Beginner

Filed under Personal Development by joshpeete on March 11, 2012 at 1:00 am {no comments}

A speaker I listened to recently talked about the most important quality he looks for when hiring. He only hires people that know how to be a beginner. I really identified with the message because I’ve always talked about this quality without labeling it as such.

Over the years, I have made it a habit to correct students when they say, “I don’t know.” I like to make sure to add the word “yet” to that statement. “I don’t know yet.”

Being able to say “I don’t know (yet)” is really an important ability to have. Some people can’t bring themselves to say this simple statement.  “I don’t know (yet)” translates to “I’m a beginner and I’m willing to learn.” It allows people to take any topic and start with step 1. The statement also ends every “I’m not good at” and replaces it with “I’m a beginner at.”  This is the mark of the life long learner…

In this hugely competitive job market being willing to learn, being a beginner, and not taking instruction as criticism is vital for landing employment.  Nobody likes a know-it-all who already knows everything and doesn’t have it in them to say “I don’t know (yet).”  Bottom line, employers hire qualified people that they like.

My personal development tip:

Be a beginner….

PS- The picture above is of my daughter being a beginner at T-ball.

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Work-Life Balance Tip: Get in the Habit of Creating New Habits

Filed under Healthy Lifestyle, Personal Development, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on March 8, 2012 at 8:41 pm {one comment}

I’ve failed at changing habits in my life so many times. But, what I’ve found is that I succeed when I only try to make one change at a time. It takes 30 days of consistent change to develop a new habit. Therefore, I’ve learned to change only one part of my life at a time and always have a habit I’m working on changing. I’m in the habit of creating new habits.

Taking dietary supplements is a recent example. My plan was to start taking a multivitamin (photo from my car seat) and drink one greens to go everyday. From the logic above, I succeeded at one but failed at the other. I have such a structured and busy life that adding two habits just did not stick over time. I did both for about a week, but continued taking vitamins for a few months now.

A better way to approach this change would have been to start with vitamins for 30 days and then while continuing that focus on my drink supplement for 30 days. So over the 60 days, both would become an everyday habit.

My next habit I’m working on is flossing. I’m about two weeks in and I need to keep that steady for another 2 weeks for long term change to occur.

Unfortunately, I’m not taking my own advice and I’m trying to get into the habit of daily exercise simultaneously. I wonder which one will win out over time…

To balance work and life, people need to have healthy habits. Comment and tell me what habit you are working on changing.

The Dentist Chair was the Most Relaxing Part of my Day

Filed under Healthy Lifestyle, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on March 7, 2012 at 9:18 pm {no comments}

With the hustle bustle of the school at this time of year – I did not take more than 10 minutes to eat and sit during the school day. However, i didn’t need more than that because I had a 3:20 dentist appointment!

I would have all the rest and relaxation I needed in the dentist chair. Just a regular cleaning – lots of teeth compliments and an hour of just lying around with my mouth open. I left the office energized and rejuvenated.

That appointment added two work-life balance benefits to my day. First, the timing of my appointment was perfect because I could teach all of my classes and take care of other urgent admin duties before leaving. I didn’t get bogged down with lower priorities. Secondly, I had a chance to relax before I start what I call my “Second Day.” I got home around 4:45, called my daughter, and went on my walk (picture posted). Salmon, university work, and a little girlfriend time awaits to round out my evening.

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Work Life Balance Tip: Don’t Let Storm Clouds Prevent Exercise

Filed under Healthy Lifestyle, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on March 5, 2012 at 7:55 pm {no comments}

Remember being a kid when it took serious weather to get you outside? Today after work, I went to the store first to pick up dinner and on my way home I planned to go on my walk. Since I live on the side of a mountain, my walk could almost be considered a hike. So, as I drive I look up at a cloud in the sky – my instant excuse.

“Na… There’s a storm coming – can’t walk today.”

I text my girlfriend:

“Huge storm cloud may prevent walk.”

Her response:

“Don’t let yourself come up with an excuse not to walk!!”

Yes, I’m tired… My eyes want sleep. My brain wants me to study tonight. Fatigue. I need the energy boost for the rest of my evening or I just won’t make it. I’m trying to think about my work-life balance before I decide to sit down for more work. My shoes are on, podcasts ready to go, and I’m out the door.

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Work-Life Balance Tip: How 1 Night in a Hotel Room Rejuvenates Body and Mind

Filed under Stress Management, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on March 4, 2012 at 11:42 pm {no comments}

An early Saturday morning drive, activity, and hotel room stay helped me with total rejuvenation. The hotel room was near water with a balcony. We enjoyed a view of boats in a bay with a city backdrop. To help with work-life balance, it is important to invest in simple pleasures that break the routine.

Leaving Work Behind: Though, due to the nature of my position, and possibly yours, this is rather hard to do. A work event occurred over this weekend that I did not attend. There was a small hiccup that needed my attention. So, I did spent about a half hour handling an issue. For those in positions with a lot of responsibility, leaving for a night during a busy time can be difficult.

Better Sleep: As a light sleeper, a problem very known to those with a heavy life work-life load, an isolated night away from everything really helps. Dark drapes, perfect room temperature, no animal sounds from pets, comfy bed, and no alarms contribute to total rejuvenation.

No Chores: Those who live with butlers and maids understand what it is like to live without chores. No dishes, no clean-up, no laundry, no pet chores, and many more no’s shift decisions to pleasure. Want to eat? Want to sit out and watch the boats? Want to go on a walk? Insert many more wants here… A one night hotel stay gives us mere mortals a taste of life with no chores.

A one night stay in a hotel can really do so much for your body and mind. Pack light, don’t cheap out on the view, and enjoy.

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Eating 18 Cookies in 15 Minutes: Unhealthy Stress Relief

Filed under Healthy Lifestyle, Stress Management by joshpeete on March 3, 2012 at 12:05 am {one comment}

Just one day after posting both healthy and unhealthy stress reduction methods, I found myself at Raley’s adding a package of cookies to my basket.

My intentions were good.  I would eat my naan pizza and have a few cookies afterward – no big deal.  I get home after a long and very stressful day and proceed with my plan.

After pouring a glass of milk, in a measuring cup because all of my other clean dishes were either dirty or too tall for dipping my cookies, I sat at my chair and opened the package.

One, Two, Three – That just wasn’t enough… I wasn’t thinking about calories, fat, or anything else.  I wasn’t thinking about life or any other stress – all I was focusing on is how good each cookie tasted after dipping them in milk.

After eating 9 servings of cookies – 18 total – 1440 calories – I finally stopped.  Not because I couldn’t eat more… rather, the package was empty. I was sad when it was over.

I wish I got sick, like a hangover, so my body would tell me not to do that again.

Honestly, I think my cookie eating was more of an escape in retrospect.  However, this method of escape and stress management ought to be avoided.  I need to continue to follow my own healthy methods of stress reduction as posted previously.  Next time, I’ll probably just not buy cookies and maybe I can listen to music or try another healthy alternative if I feel the need to escape.

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Tips to Living and Sleeping with Stress

Filed under Stress Management, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on February 29, 2012 at 11:11 pm {no comments}

I know a little something about stress. As the superintendent, principal, and teacher at our little school – I have my fair share of stressful days and situations. However, handling stress well is vital in my line of work.

Though the following methods for dealing with stress may work to some degree, be sure to avoid at all costs:

  • Eating too much (I have to work hard on this one)
  • Zoning out for hours watching TV or surfing (I work hard to avoid this one too)
  • Drinking too much
  • Gambling
  • Smoking

Do you find yourself doing the above? Focusing on healthy ways to handle stress may take some practice. It takes about a month to change habits, which unhealthy stress reducers can become if stress is something you live with regularly. So, my suggestion is to take one of the following and try it out for a month.

Healthy ways to handle stress:

  • Exercise (Just go on a walk – it’s easy)
  • Healthy diet (cooking)
  • Listen or play music
  • Spend time on hobbies
  • Brew some coffee and enjoy with friends or with a view (I love this one)
  • Writing (hey, this blog)

These are just a few ways that I manage stress. Though other important responsibilities are on my mind, I try to push issues aside to redirect my attention.

Sleeping with Stress

The main issue I have is sleep. Sometimes, that is when it is the hardest to not think about stress. I’ve been counting my breaths and allowing thoughts to enter my head and pass through like a cloud. That sometimes works. I also like to listen to mindless shows that I don’t really care about and know what happens already. I turn the volume way down because when approaching sleep your ears become really sensitive to noise. Both methods help me sleep when needing to manage stress at night.

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Life Balance: My 60-Hour Work Week Schedule

Filed under Time Management, Work-Life Balance by joshpeete on February 29, 2012 at 3:40 pm {no comments}

The way my schedule is organized, I have days that are mostly dedicated to working and others dedicated to life responsibilities. For example, Monday through Thursday are completely dedicated to work. I work for the school from 7ish to 4-5ish (sometimes far later). After that, I eat and exercise. Then, I move onto school work for my masters degree (which I do count as work). This lasts until 8 or 9pm at night. You are probably asking – where is the balance?

 

Well, in a way it is…

 

This method gives me four big long days of work, one partial day (Friday), and two days off for life hats. The trick is to get everything done within the four and a half days. In theory, I work 12 hour days 4 days a week and then an 8 hour day on Fridays. So if work responsibilities in a week exceed 56-60 hours then it may be time to re-evaluate.

 

What is the advantage of setting up my schedule with total dedication to work and total dedication to life?

 

On most weeks, I have Friday evening through Monday morning every week for relationships, hobbies, and more. I can spend the weekend with my daughter, family, girlfriend, music, website projects, and more! I put the work in up front so this is possible.

 

Q. How do you motivate yourself to get so much done Monday through Thursday?

 

A. Motivation to work from sun up to sun down will be covered on a different post.

 

Using the iPhone calendar program is key to making this whole system work.  Also, when an appointment or information needed comes up – I place it on my calendar immediately.  I’ll stop everything, get my iPhone out, and start typing.

This whole schedule is thrown out the window during summer vacation or when school is off track. I actually have some rejuvenation time – one of the advantages of being in the education field. During that off-track time, life overtakes work and I enjoy some lazy days!


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Work-Life Balance / Healthy Lifestyle / Personal & Professional Development

The purpose of this website is to share ideas, tips, and tricks that lead towards permanent vacation via work-life balance. My focus is on maintaining a healthy lifestyle and fostering personal / professional development. As you learn about me, you will see that my lifestyle balance is very far from perfect and requires on-going editing. Welcome... My name is Josh Peete – I am a father, superintendent, principal, teacher, student, musician, web developer, and much more. Don't forget to sign-up for my email newsletter before you go.