The castle is full of two things: dirty laundry and bad debt. What the queen needs is for the king to increase commerce, enforce the law, be a good husband, and a good father. What the king needs is for the queen to be professional, organized, and thorough. While each is focusing on their strengths (the queen knits while the king markets), the weaknesses (management and accountability) suffer.

It is more than a Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus type of thing. It is more of a non-complementary strength-set kind of thing. Neither one of us wants to manage  our household, our personal finances, or each other. We just want to be able to do whatever we want, whenever we want to. So what happens when we can’t do whatever it is we want to? You get a mountain of laundry, a mountain of debt, and a castle full of frustration and shouting.

Now that we have identified some of the problems, what can we do to work towards resolving them?

1. Seek an accountability partner. See if any of your family, friends, neighbors can or will help you stay accountable. It can be humbling to ask for help because it feels like you’re admitting to failure, but first, realize you are having this feeling, acknowledge it, then let it go. Try this with any limiting thought and see how it will change your life.
2. Seek professional help. Depending on what issues you are facing, this could mean seeking a financial counselor, hiring a maid, or seeing a marriage counselor. Marriage counselors aren’t just for those couples who are just getting married or looking to get a divorce. They can be helpful for management issues like the ones we are facing today.
3. Empathize. Learn to see the world from the other person’s point of view. The queen is responsible for taking care of three kids, 24 hours a day, and being the personal assistant for the king who leaves the house for 10 hours a day, then retreats to his office for another 3 hours each night to continue working. No one day is easier or harder than the other – each has it’s own set of problems and responsibilities.

Marcus Buckingham, an authority on identifying strengths and weaknesses, provides a road map for people to learn how to approach their work by emphasizing their strengths rather than weaknesses. He offers a 6-step plan for 6 weeks of reading and habit-forming action for determine strengths. Buckingham believes that the best way to work is to capitalize on your strengths, identify your strengths and weaknesses, do more of what you are strong at, do less of what you are weak at, and continue to learn and do activities that play to strength. By focusing on your strengths, you will have the most impact in your work and in your life.

And for those who haven’t heard of Dave Ramsey, he is one of the best personal finance coaches around. If you are in debt and want to start “beating debt and building wealth,” then please check out The Total Money Makeover. You can find this book and the series at Amazon. You are highly encouraged to also attend the Financial Peace University, where Dave Ramsey teaches you how to manage your money, so that your money doesn’t manage you.

The Work Nap

If you are fortunate enough to have a workplace that has an area for naps and your workload can wait, take advantage of that benefit – shoot for a 20-30 minute nap to take the edge off your exhaustion. A shorter nap will keep you in higher levels of sleep, which prevent you from waking up groggy. In order to accomplish this feat, set an alarm on your cell phone or ask a coworker to wake you.

The Work at Home Nap

If you work at home, being sleepy on the job is not as much of a problem, or is it? The real problem is keeping it from becoming a habit. And actually the habit is only a problem if it interferes with your productivity, clients, or your family. If you successfully incorporate napping into your schedule, then go for it. But if it becomes something that cuts into your work, try to do this only if you are super-tired so that you can get the most work done.

The Work at Home Nap with Kids

This is similar to situation above, but because your “boss” is your kids. If the kids are young enough, try to get them to nap with you or nap when they nap. Of course don’t leave young children unattended. If you’re afraid you can’t stay awake, call a friend, family member, or babysitter to come over and help you out. Lastly, you can always try The Meditation Nap if you need to stay awake, but also need to get some rejuvenation.

The Meditation Nap

This is not a sleeping nap, but it will give you the similar feeling of renewal that you get after a short nap. In a nutshell a meditation nap is conscious quiet rest time. Here’s how you do it.

• Allot approximately 10-20 minutes.
• Start by doing a couple stretches, whatever feels good.
• Next take 10 deep breaths with eyes closed and sitting upright.
• Take the rest of the time to empty your mind of everything. A good way to do this is to mentally repeat a mantra, which is one word or phrase such as “empty the mind” or “peace” or “om” or whatever works for you. As thoughts come into your mind, notice them like clouds going by in the sky, but don’t grab hold. Just keep coming back to your mantra.

At the end of your allotted time open your eyes, take another couple deep breaths and stretches. If you suffer from eye-strain, lightly place your hands over your eyes during part of the time. This helps eye strain tremendously. You can also try giving yourself a face and head massage.

Need more advice? Here is a complete website on how to stay alert.