SIX MONTH ANNIVERSARY!
June 1st will marks six months that I have been
working at my new job. These months have
flown by and I do enjoy my new job for the most part, but it has consumed my
life in many ways in adjusting to my new role as case manager and things such
as keeping up with my blog have fallen behind.
I hope to start writing more often and keep trying to find that balance of
managing my work life and personal life. Here are a few things I have learned
so far:
- The TO-DO list will never be completely done: I have been a fan of writing to-do list and post it reminders for a long time. At my new job I am constantly writing list of what needs to be done today and what can go on the list of trying to accomplish later this week. Prior to this job I was able to mark off all items on my to-do list completely at times and would feel a sense of accomplishment. At work I am usually able to accomplish somethings on my to-do list, but there is always something that will continue on the list for another day or week.
- Do your best and don’t be too hard on yourself: Whenever I have started in a new role in my life it takes more time than I expect to become familiar and confidant in myself. When I first started graduate school or training to be a pharmacy technician, it took time for me to understand the ropes and feel capable. The major difference is that I am working with humans to help them become more independent and I can try my best to help them improve their lives, but they will still make choices that don’t always benefit themselves and this is out of my hands. I can only offer to keep assisting them and trying new approaches to benefit them. If they stumble at times, I have to try to not take this on as my own failing as case manager and remind myself we all make mistakes and that we just have to keep on trying.
- It is important to create boundaries: When I would be driving home after completing a shift at Walgreens, I would not spend much time worrying about what did not get done that day or analyzing how things played out that shift. I catch myself thinking about my clients a lot of time on my days off from work and thinking what needs to be done next week. I feel at times that I never really punch out from the job. Many people who’ve worked in a social work field have warned me of this problem. I am trying my best to separate my off time and work time, but this is more problematic working with clients, where some are going through some major problems. I need to keep working on this so I can enjoy my life and build up my strength for the next week, so I do not burn out.
- Always do your best to be compassionate to others: I have always been interested in how other people live and how their personal histories are affecting their current lives. For this reason explains why I loved the TV show LOST. The show had such great character development and you saw glimpse into their lives before they came to the island and their experiences affected the choices they would make on the island. I did not always agree with the choices that John Locke made on the show, but knowing his history and desires, I still had compassion for him and almost all the characters on the show. Some of my clients have anger issues and make rash decisions that I cannot always comprehend; however, I know from reading their charts and spending time with them that they have experienced various hardships that I cannot imagine and am not sure how I would react to those experiences. You never know what someone has seen in their lives so try your best to show compassion and be less quick to judge.
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| SHAMBALA |
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