Happy Friday, RISERS! I hope this week has been good to you. Although I love rainy weather, I think I may have had my fill of it this week. It is seriously affecting people. I hope you have done things this week that make you happy…watch your favorite movie, listen to the playlist that calms you, and just spend time with your family.
Quote of the week: “Not everything that is faced can be changed; but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” –James Baldwin
Song of the week: I want to slow things down a bit and introduce you to a hip song called “I Can See Clearly Now,” by Johnny Nash. It was released in 1972. It’s a mellow tune, talking about how your perspective becomes vastly different when the “obstacles” you perceive are slowing you down are removed. The song exudes positivity. I hope you feel better after listening to it.
Joke of the week: What do you call security guards working outside Samsung shops? Guardians of the Galaxy.
Nugget of Wisdom for the week: I want to ease you into the subject of the workshop that will be accessible from today’s blog: time management. We have talked before about how each of us has only a finite amount of time. Once we spend it—whether investing in something worthwhile or wasting it doing something of little-to-no value—it’s gone. We cannot get it back. The line between relaxation and wasting time is a fine one. It is also important to cut large projects into manageable pieces, so you don’t get overwhelmed. If you make a daily or weekly to-do List, one method is to put at the top of your list the tasks that can be done fairly quickly. That way, as you cross them off, you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment. Another train of thought is to put the hardest job first, so that once you complete it, you’ll have the worst one out of the way. From there, the smaller tasks will give you momentum and a great feeling of getting things done. If you are in school and have class projects, schedule enough time that you can get it done bit by bit instead of waiting to cram it all into one evening…along with a major anxiety attack.
Workshop of the week: Join RiseUP for an online teen workshop that delves into the vast topic of time management. Presenter Robin Turnipseed is an entrepreneur who was a high school teacher before she became a mother of two. Click here to listen as she encourages teens to remember their list of dreams or goals and to actively pursue them. You won’t want to miss her tips from two excellent books: Eat That FROG, by Brian Tracy, and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, by Sean Covey. Learn how making lists and setting priorities can help us become as effective with our time as possible and feel great as we complete important tasks.
Have a great week. Remember, you are most awesome, and YOU ROCK!
Marion Rhines is a foster-turned-adoptive parent. She lives in Knoxville, Tenn., with her husband and five children. She has written and published two children’s books as well as two foster-care-themed novels. She has a Facebook blog, Tips from the FLIP Side, and enjoys working with children of all ages.
