An Announcement regarding Busy Season

So friends, here we go.  I’ve been putting this announcement off for a while.  Part of me thought that I wouldn’t do it justice.  The other part of me felt bad.  I mean, I started this blog to help myself (and you guys!) get through the typical Big 4 Busy Season… and now?  Well you’ve probably noted an increase in wedding posts, and a decrease in “Surviving Busy Season” posts.  (deemed reasonable.  wfp.  audit jokes anyone??)  Anyway…

…I’m not working for the Big 4 anymore.

Yes, friends, it’s true.  In November I made the decision to leave my job as a public accountant, and have since joined with a large public cable company headquartered in Philadelphia.  (You may have heard of it…)

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I got a job at “Kabletown”in their Internal Reporting group.  It’s a great job, as I loved the financial reporting period during our audits.  And while I’m not quite working for Jack Donaghy, I’m still so happy here in Kabletown.  Everyone is so nice (my manager allowed me to take time off around the holidays, even though I didn’t have any vacation time accrued!), the benefits are amazing, and my work-life balance is vastly improved.

Speaking of work-life balance…  I know that of the like 5 visitors I get to my blog, most of them are looking for posts regarding Busy Season.  For now, you all can visit the posts I’ve written about Surviving Busy Season, here.  And I promise that I’ll add more healthy recipes and other tips for surviving.  Regular Corporate America is n0t much different than Public Accounting, we just don’t have to bring dinner.   I’m still struggling to work out in the morning, and bring my lunch – and eat healthy dinners for that matter!  (In fact I think I took better care of myself last busy season than I did for the rest of the year!)

And I know there are a lot of you out there going “But you were barely a senior!  You should have stayed until Manager!”  Trust me, you weren’t alone in thinking that.  Or saying it to me.  But guys, I just wasn’t happy.  Busy season turned into an almost year-round event for me, and I didn’t have any time to live.  I needed to make a change, so I did. 

I want to go into more detail about how and when and why to quit a job, but I’ll work that into another post.  For now, just know that you can make a change in your life without spontaneously combusting.  (This is something that I struggled with for a long time.)  And if you’re looking for inspiration, check this out.  I saw this post from Carrots n Cake highlighting the Holstee Manifesto when I was still thinking about quitting, and it really spoke to me.  I hope it speaks to you too

Surviving Busy Season: Let it go

It shouldn’t be much of a surprise to anyone that I am a Type-A, anxiety-ridden individual.  A lot of people in my profession are certainly Type-A, and a lot of people in my family deal with anxiety. 

Even as a baby, I showed signs of anxiety.  I mean, seriously, look at those little fists of fury!  What infant gets so stressed?  Not much has changed 23 years later - I find myself balling up my fists when I get tense.  Since during busy season, I’m tense approximately 90% of the time, I’ve noticed this happening more and more. 

Some things have helped.  Yoga, for one, has been a huge help.  By focusing on my balance and my breathing, it’s hard to focus on much else at the same time.  Even just 20 minutes in the morning helps start the day on the right foot.  Running helps too, but not as much.  I am able to take out any frustrations on the treadmill, and I feel so strong after a good run. 

Sometimes though, the stressors swell up and it feels like all the yoga or running in the world won’t wash them away.  It gets a little hard to breathe, everything irritates you, and you have to peel your fingers out of the fists you catch yourself making.  What if it’s the middle of the workday, and you know that since you’ll be working until 10pm that you won’t be able to lay your anger out on the treadmill until the following morning?

Here are a few tips I’ve picked up from an article I read in Real Simple a few months ago.  This is one of the few articles that I keep returning to over and over – I should just tape it to my refrigerator!  I hope this helps you all ease your mind when times get rough.  You can read the whole article here… and I really hope you do!

1)  Make it worse.  There have certainly been times when I start to panic.  “OMG I have to lead this conference call, what if I forget what I’m supposed to say?”  “OMG I can’t believe the senior manager saw me trip.  What if he kicks me off all his jobs because I’m embarrassing?”  Real Simple says that instead of controling your anxieties (which only makes them worse), exaggerate them instead,and see what happens.  Go ahead and trip in front of your manager.  Maybe he’ll tease you a little bit for it, but chances are he won’t even notice.  (Take my word for this one.  I almost fell on my face last year in front of a manager, and yet somehow I’m still on all his jobs!)

2)  Set aside worry time.  I love this line from Real Simple: “All too often we take a “Crackberry” approach to our worries: They show up unannounced, like constantly dinging e-mails, and we stop everything to address them―even if we should be doing something else.”  In case the crackberry wasn’t bad enough with real emails – then we get these stressors pinging ups all the time.  I have observed in myself and my coworkers that we spend so much time focused on how much everything sucks that we could have spent that fretting time doing something productive.  Real Simple suggests writing down your worries throughout the day, and forgetting about them.  Then take 20 minutes later in the day to look over your whole list – how many of those worries do you actually still care about?!  Chances are there will be very few.

3)  Breathe it out.  This one really hit home for me.  Ever notice how you hold your breath when you’re stressed?  Think about it – you probably do it more than you realize.  (I was doing it just now!)  We can’t forget to breathe, guys!  As if you weren’t already worried enough – your body is worried that it’s suffocating, and it just makes you feel worse.  Concentrate on your breathing as though you are in yoga class.  For a minute, just breathe.  Don’t let anything else cross your mind.  Even a few deep breaths will help you relax and stay focused!

I hope these few tips helped you out.  There are so many more in the article itself, and I hope it helps you as much as it has helped me.  Godspeed my friends – busy season is almost over!

What do you do to stay relaxed?

Surviving Busy Season: Go Veggie!

Guys.  I had the BEST lunch today.  And I’ve been thinking about writing this post for a long time, but this lunch finally gave me the proper motivation.

My senior and I are working in the city today instead of out at the client site.  Since I’ve already been going through withdrawl from the food I got used to while being out here on my last client, I decided to make the most of my lunch.  I was CRAVING veggies again, and headed down to the deli in our building.  They have this sandwich – grilled eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, peppers, and provolone cheese.  And in case I didn’t have enough veggies – I got some grilled asparagus on the side!  It was amazing!  I washed it all down with my favorite Honest Tea – Moroccan Mint Green Tea.  I could drink this stuff by the gallon – and I would if it wasn’t so expensive   It was worth the splurge for one day in the office though!

Anyway, I’d been meaning to write this post for a while and my lunch just inspired me.  I’ve noticed that a lot of my meals this busy season have been vegetarian.   I know that part of this is thanks to the blog world for letting me know how creative you can be as a veggie, and part of it is thanks to one of my bestest work friends who is a veggie for religious purposes.  Being around her makes me feel more like being vegetarian is just normal.  Anyway, I’m not gonna lie – I know that the biggest motivation for going partially vegetarian is for the ease of preparation.

As I’ve been packing my lunches and dinners for the week, I’ve tried to make things as easy as possible for myself.  This includes not having to cook chicken or beef or pork any more than I have to.  Instead, I try to incorporate my nutrients elsewhere.  I am a big fan of canned beans – they provide protein without any additional prep work.  I throw as many different veggies in my soups and meals as I can so that the fiber will fill me up.  And if I think it won’t be enough, I just add some grains.

Going veggie for most of my meals has also encouraged me to be more creative.  Instead of just chopping some chicken over rice, I have to think about the individual flavor of the beans, veggies, and any condiments.  Will carrots change the taste of my butternut squash soup?  Hardly.  But will it add additional beta carotene, and vitamin A?!  Certainly.  They were well worth the addition to the soup.  So far my two favorite meals so far have been the above mentioned butternut squash soup – and this little scrumptious number… adapted from trader joe’s “polka dot mac and cheese.”  I prepared one box of Annie’s mac and cheese, and added frozen broccoli, and shelled edamame.  Edamame and cheese?  Don’t knock it til you try it. And the protein content is out of this world!  It kept me full for hours.

I grew up in a veggie-starch-protein family.  Prior to this busy season, I’ve never appreciated a vegetarian diet before – but I’m slowly coming to find that it can be just as delectable as eating meat based dinners.  Vegetarian recipes can be so simple, and if cooked properly are missing the grease and fat which are so frequently a side dish of meat entrees.  While I don’t think I am in a proper mindset to appreciate a full veggie diet, I strongly consider giving it a shot – even if it’s just for a few days.  Your tummy and mind will appreciate your creative veggies dishes!  Godspeed