Sharpen the Saw

This is the longest stretch that I have gone without writing a piece for my blog since I started it in the spring of 2012.  I have not been slacking.  I have been “Sharpening the Saw”.  For those of you who are not familiar with the term “Sharpen the Saw” it comes from the famous book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, written by Stephen R. Covey.

He describes his 7th habit this way:
Sharpen the Saw means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have–you. It means having a balanced program for self-renewal in the four areas of your life: physical, social/emotional, mental, and spiritual.
 
For not working as an expert in the field of wellness, he pretty much nailed it. While there are several models of the dimensions of wellness, he touches on just about all of them in his description.
 
 
He goes on to describe his 7th habit like this:

Feeling good doesn’t just happen. Living a life in balance means taking the necessary time to renew yourself. It’s all up to you. You can renew yourself through relaxation. Or you can totally burn yourself out by overdoing everything. You can pamper yourself mentally and spiritually. Or you can go through life oblivious to your well-being. You can experience vibrant energy. Or you can procrastinate and miss out on the benefits of good health and exercise. You can revitalize yourself and face a new day in peace and harmony. Or you can wake up in the morning full of apathy because your get-up-and-go has got-up-and-gone. Just remember that every day provides a new opportunity for renewal–a new opportunity to recharge yourself instead of hitting the wall. All it takes is the desire, knowledge, and skill.

I couldn’t have described it better myself. Is this something you do on a daily basis, or do you need to carve time out periodically to do some catching up?  I have been fortunate enough to attend great conferences and complete a certification in the last couple of weeks.  Both of these opportunities have been an excellent way to sharpen my saw.  It allowed me to slow down, connect with people, reflect, attend some great fitness classes, attempt some yoga, do some meditation, eat better, sleep (a little), among many other things.  Stepping away from my regular routine, even for a few days has brought about a sense of energy and renewal.  I think I need to do it more often!
 
 

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