She rushed into my office out of breath.
“Sorry I’m late….ugh, I’m always running late. I’m just so busy.”
This is a sentiment I hear often.
“I have too much do to.”
“There’s not enough time in the day.”
“How are you?” “Good….but busy.”
Our country is an epidemic of busy. Many people wear it like a badge of honor.
I’m sure you’ve read countless articles on managing your time better.
There are systems, programs and easy to follow tips and tricks. You are told to write lists, wake up earlier, cut “time suckers” out of your life.
All of those suggestions can help, but they don’t address the underlying issue.
It’s how you approach your days.
You wake up.
Almost immediately, all of the things that you “have to” do run through your head.
Your blood pressure rises, your pulse quickens.
You haven’t even gotten out of bed yet and you are already busy.
Now you feel pressure.
When you feel pressure you feel rushed.
And this is your day.
Everyday.
You start out feeling busy and you end up feeling busy.
Even if you get everything done with time to spare, you will still feel overextended and anxious.
Because your thermostat is set to rush, rush, rush. Even when you don’t have much of anything to do.
Your body is in a constant state of turmoil.
If you hit the jackpot and actually find some time to relax, you can’t do it. You feel antsy. It’s difficult for you to sit back and enjoy.
It isn’t how much you have to do that counts, it is how you go about doing it.
Whatever is on your to do list will get done…or it won’t.
That isn’t the point.
The point is your attitude and how you approach your to do list.
What if you woke up, took a few deep breaths and said to yourself “Whatever really has to get done today will get done.”
What if you chose to be calm about that fact, and walked through your day being ok with whatever happens?
You don’t have to be in the habit of feeling stressed and hurried about everything you do.
That is a choice and you can let it go if you want.
It is as simple as catching yourself when you feel pressed and stopping to breathe. Then you can remind yourself that “whatever really has to get done today will get done.” (Otherwise it didn’thave to get done, did it?)
No one is behind you with a cattle prod. The haste you feel is your own doing.
At the end of the day, would you rather know that you had paced yourself steadily and taken the time to enjoy the moments of your life?
Or would you prefer the impression that you did so much that you can’t even recall what you did?
Which will you choose?
It’s not really about how much you have to do. That is mostly the same on any given day.
It’s about how you approach it and move through it.
That is where the magic lies.
If you try this and find that you absolutely cannot slow down; that you realize you need to be busy to feel worthwhile….
or that you need to stay busy to prove something….or if relaxing makes you feel guilty….
….well, if that is you my friend, then I encourage you to hit that contact in the upper right hand corner of this page.
Because that is a deeper matter.
Hugs,
Lorna
In order to change your life, you must first change your mind.
Leave a Reply