I know I said that I would be reviewing podcasts for a minute, but I have a surprise: I was able to sneak in a book this weekend! It was a nice short read, and more of a conversation in written form. But it offered perspective on the crazy world we live in.
369 Days: How to Survive a Year of Worst-Case Scenarios by Michael Levitt outlines the 
life of a guy who, by all typical standards, was quite successful. He had a good job, a wonderful family, and a wonderful home– all accomplished relatively early in life. But then, to paraphrase, the dominoes started to fall.
369 Days is the story of how stress permeated Mr. Levitt’s life and set off a very quick chain reaction toward rock bottom. Yet he came out on the other side better for it, and wants to tell his story to help others. After all, stress doesn’t just stay in your head; it can manifest in unpleasant physical symptoms.
Having just finished a very difficult Monday (yes, worse than most Mondays), it’s nice to remind myself about Michael’s story– working long hours, checking emails and handling phone calls outside of the office, really pushing himself mentally and physically to meet the challenge of starting a health clinic from scratch with no experience in healthcare. Our jobs are not worth putting ourselves in the hospital over, no matter how much we love them or how good at them we are. It not only impacts us, but also those around us– our coworkers, friends, and family.
I’ll admit that I am guilty of checking emails in the evenings and on weekends, just to see what I’m in for the next work day. I won’t say that it hasn’t put a damper on some otherwise wonderful times. But I’m on a self-betterment journey, and seeing how others have learned the hard way really pushes the point home that we are not here just to work. Our bodies don’t like that, and it doesn’t end up being very enjoyable in other ways either.
I recommend checking out this book, and you can also learn more about Michael Levitt and how he’s helping others avoid the same mistakes he made on his website, Breakfast Leadership. He also has a podcast that fits well into any schedule, since most episodes are only about 3 minutes, and these small tips can really add up to a less hectic morning, and life in general. He bounced back, you can too! Or, also maybe avoid the need to.
Got a book in mind that I should read next? Or maybe a podcast to listen to? Post it below!
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