My business was so successful in 2017 that I made more money than I ever thought possible. I worked nearly every day, including weekends and holidays, and in spite of being exhausted, I was thrilled.

In 2018, the year I turned 60, I vowed to pay more attention to my health and less to the bottom line. As a result, I made less than half of what I had earned the year prior. Even so, I had weight-loss surgery, developed into a serious Tai Chi student, and started studying yoga as well.

This year, I’m working to integrate the success of the past two years into a balanced, healthy life. I want to remain focused on my health, because I have about 50 more pounds to lose and I want to be an active grandma when the possibility presents itself. But I also want my business to be as successful as possible.

I’ve surprised myself by developing and sustaining an excellent exercise habit for the first time in my adult life. I’m walking at least 10,000 steps a day. I take both Tai Chi and yoga twice a week and I do cardio and weight-training at the gym at least twice weekly.

Even more surprisingly, I’m finding that fitness is benefitting my work. Yes, I take hours away from the computer every day to exercise. Still, the hours I devote to my writing and editing are more efficient and streamlined. Best of all, I’m happier, calmer, and more fulfilled all around than ever.

It’s puzzling to me, and seemingly counterintuitive, that I can devote fewer hours or labor to produce the same productive output while increasing the quality of my work.

For answers I looked to some of the world’s most well-known writers and scientists. Albert Einstein walked the mile and a half from his home to Princeton where he taught classes, and was known to lecture as he and his students walked the campus grounds.

Charles Dickens, an avid walker, would write each day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and walk for the rest of the day, sometime logging 20 to 30 miles at a time.

Henry David Thoreau wrote in his journal that walking made him more productive: “Methinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.”

Writing on Medium.com, Debby Germino discusses her participation in the 30-Day Stoic Challenge. The hour-long walk that was part of the challenge became a habit that offers her joy and contemplation, Germino says, and became something she looked forward to every evening.

I have found that my body is happy to be engaged in movement again. After years of debilitating arthritis, my joints are strengthening and growing less painful as I move them regularly. My cholesterol level and blood pressure are both normal, I’m off all my diabetes medications, I’ve lost 80 pounds, and I’m only taking a couple of pain pills a day, down from eight.

To say that daily walking and exercise have benefitted my health is a no-brainer. But I am convinced that movement has improved everything, from my relationships to my professional life. My work flows better, I’m sleeping more, and I find my emotions are well-balanced. The time outside, away from devices helps me to focus and approach my projects with a clear mind.

If you are stuck in a sedentary job like I’ve been for so many years, I urge you to find a way to integrate regular exercise into your life and make it a habit. Even if it weren’t a big part of my weight-loss journey, I’m convinced regular movement has improved everything in my life. I know it can do the same for you.

Sooner or later, every business owner will face a slowdown in work.

Whether it’s clients retiring or going out of business, or even a nationwide economic downturn, what can you do to stay motivated when the phone isn’t ringing, and no new business is coming in?

There are two ways to look at this: One is to relax and enjoy your time off because you may not have the opportunity anytime soon; the other is to capitalize on your free time and do all the things you can’t normally get to when business is booming.

Tackle long-neglected tasks
If you decide to use the time productively, you might want to tackle all the mundane tasks you normally set aside, including updating your website, backing up your work to external hard drives, designing fresh business cards, or creating a new pricing structure.

Consider upgrading your computer, your internet provider, your modem and router, or purchasing a new smartphone or tablet to allow you to work more efficiently. Study new apps that can streamline workflow and track your time wisely. Look at new technology that can make your work life easier, more productive, and more organized.

Boost your networking efforts
Another way to ward off future slowdowns is to double your networking efforts. Publish a blog that includes advice to new people in your industry. Reconnect with past customers you enjoyed working with. Attend a conference or join a professional organization to meet new people in your field.

Another way to extend your networking is to ask advice from colleagues. Do they have hints for building your business? Do they have new ways to hunt prospective business that might also work for you?

If you aren’t already doing so, join a professional organization in your industry and become active as a volunteer. It’s sure to bring more business your way.

Look for work in your own backyard
Inquire with existing clients if there are additional projects you could do for them. Consider checking in with dormant clients to say hello and remind them of your services. Update your e-mailing list to include new prospects and clients.

Cultivate existing clients
It’s easy to take clients for granted, or to acknowledge them once a year at the holidays. Instead, why not sent them small gifts or hand-written notes of thanks for their loyalty? You might also want to develop a small promotional gift that highlights your business and send it to past, current, and inactive clients as well as potential clients.

Once you are certain that your clients are happy with your work and plan to continue with you, ask them for referrals, and get testimonial statements from them to add to your marketing materials.

Beef up your marketing materials
A business slowdown is the perfect time to concentrate on promotional strategies and tactics. Update your LinkedIn profile, begin publishing high-level content on your LinkedIn page that positions you as a thought leader in your industry. Develop a blog about your industry. Send regular e-newsletters to clients and prospects.

Re-educate yourself and stay current in your field
Since you have a little more time on your hands, use it to read the new books published in your field. Stay current by catching up on industry publications and periodicals. Learn new skills through LinkedIn classes, professional webinars, and business podcasts.

There is no time like the present to do all the things you put off when business is busy. By implementing these tasks, your work promises to be as busy as you want it to be – sooner than you think.

Last year I made one New Year’s resolution – to dedicate myself to better health. This year, I’m still working on that goal and I’ve added another one: Invest time and money to streamline my home-based business, ultimately creating a wireless operation that’s more efficient, organized, and productive.

Whether it’s tidying queen Marie Kondo sharing her downsizing lifestyle on Netflix or Forbes publishing tips on boosting productivity, it’s hard to ignore our shared dedication to increased home and office efficiency.

With my 2019 resolution in mind, I’m using these tools and practices:

1. Pen-and-paper lists. I’ve reinstituted a practice I followed for many years and purchased an old-fashioned composition notebook. I use it to log my phone calls, jot down ideas, and manage my to-do lists. In the past I loved this method of documenting calls and meetings, and my clients and colleagues marveled at my detailed notes. I find that this tried-and-true method keeps me on task and saves background details I might otherwise forget.
   
2. A more efficient office. I’m planning to invest in new, streamlined office furniture and electronics so I can work wirelessly and organize my files electronically. Before moving furniture around or making any purchases, however, I’m taking time to sift, sort, and purge my paper files, e-documents, and email folders, reversing my lifelong packrat habits.
   
3. Schedule exercise sessions. My new healthy lifestyle requires that I spend at least an hour a day exercising, whether I’m taking a Tai Chi or yoga class, working out with my husband at the gym, or listening to Spotify on a long walk. I’m scheduling my workouts on my Google calendar to ensure health remains a top priority. Making time for this is a must.
   
4. An organized closet. I’ve shared my recent weight-loss surgery with friends, colleagues, and clients. I’m shedding clothing sizes, so I’m continually reorganizing my closet to make room for the next-smallest size. I’ve even gone down a half-size in shoes. Constantly purging my closet has made me more mindful of my purchases and has forced me to be better-organized and use my space wisely.
   
5. Efficient meal-planning. My gastric sleeve surgery dramatically reduced my stomach, so I’m changing the ways I shop for food and prepare meals. I find that I’m more aware of everything in our pantry, fridge, and freezer. Our grocery-shopping lists include lots of protein, veggies and fruit, very few carbohydrates, and virtually no processed food. This isn’t just something I’m doing for me but it benefits the whole family.
   

Hopefully, these tips will spark ideas for better efficiency and, perhaps, even better health for you. As for me, I love starting anew with blank slate. Beginning the year right with a renewed commitment to better organization and better health gives me a lot of pleasure and satisfaction every step of the way.

Striving for happiness is a constant challenge. It becomes nearly impossible when we face big changes at home or work.

Unless we set boundaries, unrelieved anxiety can fester into life-threatening health issues – not to mention problems with our spouses and families.

We’re all stressed out
I neglected the danger signs when my father passed away, my workload increased, and the demands of my job permeated my life. Tension and worry gave way to a major depression. Ultimately, I missed several weeks of work.
When you’re sweating to meet goals and deadlines, long hours are expected, and personal life is diminished. Your focus becomes success at any cost, and work becomes your life. If enough time passes, you begin to think that this is the New Normal.

Make life better
Gwen Moran, writing in Inc. Magazine, acknowledges the conundrum. “Into each life, some annoyances, obstacles, and misfortune will fall,” Moran says. “And while some self-help gurus will tell you to simply ditch what’s making you unhappy or holding you back, sometimes, it’s not that easy.”

In her story, “6 Tricks for Surviving Work and Personal Adversity,” Moran quotes Linda Hoopes, author of “Prosilience: Building Your Resilience for a Turbulent World.”

“Everybody has those constraints and situations that we don’t want to be in,” says Hoopes, a licensed clinical social worker and resilience expert. “Sometimes, you’re stuck with them for the time being. But there are things that you can do to make many situations better and cultivate greater resilience, even as you look for long-term solutions or resolutions.”

Small rewards can help
If your situation is long-lasting, it helps to pay special attention to your own comfort and relief.

That doesn’t mean an expensive weekend trip to a fancy spa. Ongoing self-care that helps relieve stress, promotes deep sleep, and offers a respite from your unrelenting pressures is optimal.

Commonly suggested remedies like long, hot baths with scented bubbles, facials, massages, yoga, exercise, and acupuncture really work. Taking an hour to read for pleasure, or sitting on your patio for a few minutes listening to birdsong, playing with your dog, or calling your best friend are small indulgences with big rewards.

Make lists
Break down your responsibilities, list them, and give each a priority. This will not only help keep you organized – it also will force you to focus on the things that matter rather than the self-critical voice in your head.
Is change possible?

Change what you can about your situation, advises Hoopes. “Even within a bad situation, you can make small changes to improve it and turn it into motivation to make bigger changes,” she notes. “You can look for opportunities to learn new skills, even in a job you hate. If you’re managing caretaking responsibilities, you might be able to enlist help from others to get some time for yourself. Think creatively about your situation and how you might be able to make small changes to improve it.”

Track your progress
Moran says one important way to combat job fatigue is to reframe your situation. Instead of complaining about what you cannot change, try listing the ways you have benefitted the company, the professional honors you’ve earned, or the ways you have grown professionally. Seeing yourself more objectively helps when the boss bears down.

When I made the career switch from journalism to public relations, I was apprehensive about working for a public relations agency. I worried about reputation and integrity and how I would perform.

Mostly I worried about tracking 15-minute increments of billable time for every task and assignment. What if I didn’t fulfill client expectations in the budgeted time? What if I was too slow?


Time is Money
It turns out that tracking my time during my six years at a full-service PR agency taught me one of the most valuable workplace lessons: Time is money, just as Benjamin Franklin said.

Today, years later and now an independent consultant, I appreciate that lesson every day. When providing cost estimates to my clients I break down each task according to the time required and quote my price based on those estimates.

Tracking every 15-minute time increment may seem overwhelming or unnecessary, but trust me, it’s a discipline I rely upon every day and a detail my clients appreciate. They pay me to juggle multiple projects, accomplish complicated assignments quickly and accurately, and provide an accounting of where I spend my time.

Even Small Periods of Time are Valuable
Because time is money, even the 10 minutes you spend waiting in a client’s office offers valuable opportunities. I’ve become quite skilled at identifying small tasks that I can squeeze between longer, more complicated assignments.
If you have just a few moments, consider checking one of these things off your list.
1. Create your daily to-do list.
2. Prioritize your tasks.
3. Clean out your purse, desk drawer, or briefcase.
4. Organize emails into folders.
5. Clear the top of your desk.
6. Do 10 reps of an arm or shoulder exercise.
7. Do some deep breathing and a short meditative exercise.

If you have 15 minutes to kill, how about getting these chores done?
1. Think carefully about a work problem for which you need solutions.
2. Take a short walk around the office, or better yet, outside in the fresh air.
3. Call your doctor, chiropractor, or dentist to make that long-postponed appointment.
4. Schedule the gardener to trim trees and shrubbery.
5. Stop by the dry cleaners to pick up or drop off clothing.
6. Phone your mother.

If you have 20-30 minutes, try doing these things:
1. Use this time for creativity – think about new ways to approach your work.
2. Read one of the articles you’ve saved for when you have a few extra minutes.
3. Listen to an audiobook.
4. Eat a healthy snack.
5. Check out online management tools, like Asana or Basecamp.

Whether you have just five minutes between appointments or find yourself with a chunk of unscheduled time, you can be prepared to bang out some chores, errands, and other to-do items. Keep your calendar handy, use your smartphone to check off your progress, and always have a book or article with you to read. You won’t regret living with the adage ‘time is money’ in the forefront of your mind.

I’ve spent a lot of time trying to be more productive and efficient. Along the way I’ve found that countless seminars, conference talks and book chapters list many ways to increase productivity – some offer similar advice while others contradict each other.

When I learn about an especially successful business leader, I study their habits to learn the secrets of their single-mindedness. I read every article on efficiency that I run across. And I’ve put many ideas into practice during decades as a journalist and public relations consultant.

I think it’s important that we evaluate which of these ideas work for us in our particular circumstances. A lot depends on whether or not we’re organized, detail-oriented or survive best in a chaotic environment under severe deadlines. All of us have unique work habits that can’t be expected to fit into any expert’s mold.

I’ve created my own list of ways to be more productive. Taken together, one or more items here may help you discover new ways to conquer distractions, work simpler, check items off of your to-do list, and save some time.

1. Less noise and fewer distractions. Even though I came of age in a noisy, smoky newsroom, I appreciate the value of silence when I’m trying to comprehend something complex. Now that I work in the middle of my home it can be challenging to carve out some quiet time, but each of my family members understand that my business is a priority, so they usually cooperate. Then, there’s the dog…

2. To-do lists: to do or not to do? Many people love to make lists and some of them have elevated list-making to an art. I find that it makes sense to write all my projects and deadlines by client in Basecamp. For a small monthly fee I can have 10 clients or projects open, and each of them can have multiple to-do items, discussions and deadlines. I find that by calling up my Basecamp calendar I know immediately what my most pressing projects are for that day.

3. Be punctual. When you arrive late to see a client or are tardy to a meeting, you give the impression that you are too busy to care about anyone else’s priorities. I used to be chronically late. But when I realized the impression I was making, I consciously determined to leave early for every appointment. Naturally, I also make sure I have reading material available in case I’m a little too prompt.

4. Avoid multitasking. The argument over juggling multiple assignments rages on. And while it’s true that most of us balance several projects at once, it’s also a fact that we must set and keep priorities to keep our sanity. This is where the Basecamp calendar or to-do list can come in handy – we can estimate the time we must devote to each project and try to ensure we can treat each one as a priority. It doesn’t always work, but that’s the plan.

5. Flexible workplace and work hours. Nothing distracts from one’s work more than the nagging feeling we get when we know we can’t be in two places at once, and that a loved one needs us right away. I’ve treasured my time as an independent consultant largely because it’s allowed me to be useful to my aging mother.

6. Time sheets. Time sheets can teach a very valuable lesson. Time is money. Track all your activities one day and see where you waste time and when you are most efficient. See if you are putting in the long work hours you think you are, and tally up what your time is really worth.

7. Increased communication. There’s a vast difference between receiving an assignment in a quick email and having a strategic discussion with your client about the audience, tone and purpose of your next project.

8. Positive atmosphere. Do you work better while you listen to music? Can you cope with many different background noises, or will the neighbors’ barking dog distract you? Knowing the conditions that are most conducive to productivity allows you to set the right tone when you tackle a project.

9. Eat a frog. This is an old expression but it still rings true today. For many of us, starting each new day by tackling the least-liked project on our to-do list frees us up for a creative, productive environment full of much more pleasant tasks.

10. Stay off social media. Easier said than done. While our LinkedIn postings are waiting to be tracked and our Twitter feed is silent, real work can engage our minds for maximum efficiency. Yes, social media provides us with important marketing tools – but it has its place.

I hope that this list prompts you to think hard about the ways in which you can be most effective. Many of these ideas were standard practice in bygone days, but they still provide a framework for productive work. And now, let’s get to work!