GETTING MY SCHEDULE UNDER CONTROL
David Grant
October 1, 1989
Early in my marriage, I realized my pace was having an adverse impact on my wife. But I was a pastor! My feet hit the floor running. I wanted to help people. I wanted to meet their expectations.
The church soon doubled in size and implemented a second worship service. Administering a church program, calling on new people, struggling to stay accessible to meet people's needs stuck me in "frantic." But after fifteen years of this, my wife began to lose hope. Joy was gone. Resentment was building. My promises to do better never lasted. A cool distance developed between us.
Eventually we ended up seeing a counselor, and agreed to live by some principles that restructured my time and gave our marriage new life.
Admit I have a problem
I realized that I, not my wife, was the problem. Although I took some regular time off, I was dragging her through life, allowing everyone else to control my schedule.
My family background taught me that hard work in academics and athletics yielded the ego-building rewards of approval and appreciation. It was natural for me to practice this pattern through college and seminary and perpetuate it in the ministry. I began to suspect, however, that "servanthood" was, in many cases, a cleverly disguised insecurity.
Whatever environmental and psychological factors might be involved in my workaholism, I realized that only when I admit my problem, and accept responsibility for it, will I make progress.
Set a "block" calendar
I needed a schedule to work "smart," not just long. The counselor taught me some techniques to balance a workaholic's schedule.
Divide waking hours into three four-hour blocks: 8-Noon, 1-5 P.M., 6-10 P.M. This yields twenty-one blocks of time in a week. With space for meals and sleeping.
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