I used to have a team mantra, that actually motivated quite a few individuals. It was: “work hard, play hard”. We were a bunch of traveling consultants- partly why I’ve been to 49 out of the 50 states- who were mission driven. But we were also quite susceptible to burnout. Traveling for work is not all that glamorous. It’s not good when you wake up in a hotel and for a nanosecond can’t remember which city you happen to be in. Trust me, that has happened to a high percentage of business travelers. And, then when you are home, that too seems a bit strange. Add to that travel delays, rude fellow passengers, and the cultural navigation of new cities. Unlike what Sheila E sang about, it wasn’t a glamorous life.
You get the picture. As such, my rally cry for the troops was work hard, play hard. Everyone had to define for themselves what play hard meant. For some, it meant catching a Blue Man group show in a small town. For others, it meant clubbing till 3am. My point was to say we will work hard, but there will be something at the end that will offset that. There will be a balance of sorts.
Nowadays- five years later- its work hard and recharge. Apparently play hard went out of vogue. Maybe too much pressure physically and mentally. Now we are to recharge. I suppose that means quite time and a cup of tea or a literal recharge detox juice. When you work hard and play hard, you do eventually run out of fumes. You sputter. You toss and turn. You end up burning out.
Here’s the thing. Even with recharging you can burn out. You can try to zen out after work. However, if work is toxic, there may not be enough room or capacity to recharge. At that point, it may be more its time to work hard and move on.
Categories: Culture, identity, Leadership, Management, mental health, Psychology, society, work, workplace
psychologistmimi 
For All The Years That Warm And Fuzzy
Play And Joy Are Words With No Substance
i Understood How To Do Then Yes This is What
Enough Work Related Stress Will Do When Not Only
Chronic Yet Acute from Years 10 And 11 Of 11 Years Then
Just Getting Ready to Go to ‘General Adaptation Syndrome’
Yes AS Humans Have Limits And Stress is Cumulative This Way
Speaking of Play
it Reminds me of the
“Big Lebowski” Movie
When ‘The Dude’ Meets up
With Just Another So-Called
Rich Toxic Patriarch Responsible For
Someone Peeing on His Rug That
Really Keeps His Room Together
And The Rich Guy Who Also
Had the Name ‘ Lebowski’
Called The Dude Out
For His Casual Playful
Boxer Shorts and Yes
Sun Glasses Attire
Saying No One Dresses Like
That And Get A Job Like His Parents Had
Apparently ‘The Dude’ Had Been Through Some
‘Stuff’ And No Longer Had to Work for Pay too
And True That Makes Some Who Do Very Butt Hurt Indeed
As Strolling Around the Block This Morning in a Slow Dance
Making Small Talk With An Older Managing Contractor
Installing A New Air-Conditioner As i Complimented
The Break in Florida’s Sweltering Heat in Cold Front
Way And The Contractor Said He’d Rather Be Taking
it Easy Like me As There is Some Discomfort Where
i Live When an Able Looking Dude isn’t Making
Money Like it’s a Religion of Some Kind Hehe
Protestant Work Ethic and All of that Indeed
Anyway As He Could See All i Did in Life is Play
Now Probably Seeing me Around Town Dancing
For No Reason Yet Joy There too i told Him Yep
Working For the Military for a Quarter of A Century
Almost Killed me So i’ve Been Retired For 14 Years Now
Of Course the Protestant Work Ethic Will Accept A Fallen
Military Hero Yet Not Someone on the Side of the Street of Course
i Didn’t Go to the Trouble to Explain to Him That i only Worked As
A Federal Employee i Let Him Do His Bowing to me as He was Taught
And Then at Walmart An Otherwise Kind Cashier was Lamenting Over
the Prospect of Those Who Live South of the Border Pursuing Immigrant
Green Card Employment Putting the Broken Hurricane Egg of Florida’s
Peninsula Back Together For Governor DeSaTaNiS Having to Eat His
Words Devaluing Humanity Seeking Asylum From Harmful Countries
As Just Illegal Aliens i’ve Seen Them Roof They Make it A Play of Dance
And They Get the Job Done With an Enthusiasm of Play For How Happy
They Are Just To Be Able to Survive in This Life With Enough is Enough
It’s True It’s Best
to Make Life Play
Even if it is Work For
Pay We Do And No Amount
of Stress is Worth Once Upon
A Time One Life to LiVE NeW NoW
And Yes if Other Folks Don’t Wanna
Come Out and Play They Might Re-Consider
If They Wanna Save Their Own Butts For Real
Already Made That Mistake Before Oh God Yes
Pain And Numb Teaches Best Life Lessons oF ALL iN PLaY..:)
LikeLike