Every month I choose one Friday to unplug from work and spend the day with my daughter.  You should have seen her eyes light up when she heard we would be spending an entire fun-filled day together! 

When did this great tradition begin?  Today!

Why did this great tradition begin?  Because I decided to!

What did we do?  Let’s see…first a trip to Starbucks to get the day started right.  This included a chocolate milk and chocolate donut for her, while I enjoyed a triple-grande white chocolate mocha.  It seemed a race to see who would be bouncing off the walls the soonest.  Next came the Lake Oswego library where she picked out 12 books on fairies (gee, I can’t wait to read all of them too her), and then on to Big Al’s for games and lunch.

I know anyone with children reading this is probably saying to themselves, “Oh, I would love to do that!”  My question to you is, “Why don’t you?”

We hear the clichés over and over: “Life is too short.”  “Enjoy it now because your children will grow up too fast.”

Truth be told, I have fallen into the same trap as many others I know.  Running three businesses has me going 100 miles per hour every day, every week.  Finding balance is a struggle, and always has been.  Anyone self-employed or paid 100% on commissions understands the pressure to NOT take days off.  A day off can directly impact our income, leading to the excuses to ourselves and our family that we have to work if we want all the nice things we have. 

Hmmm…but then I stop and ask myself, “What’s nicer than spending a day with my daughter?”  Isn’t that why I choose to be self-employed and in charge of my own schedule?  That freedom goes wasted if I don’t actually utilize it!

So what if you don’t run your own business and have the freedom to take a day off whenever you want?  Dedicate a Saturday or Sunday.  Leave early one day.  Go in late one day.  It is amazing just spending an hour or two fully engaged with my “almost” 4-year old daughter.  She’s becoming a woman in front of my eyes.  Today’s Daddy-Daughter day was worth any missed calls at work, potentially lost clients, and a fuller work-load come Monday. 

I realize I am a workaholic, but it is up to me to make my daughter and family a priority.  Work to live…don’t live to work, right?  Here’s to many more Daddy-Daughter days to come!

For you other workaholics out there, what do you do to stay balanced and fulfilled?