Wow, January’s gone. Just like that. I’ve got a kink in my neck already from trying to keep up with 2014!
It’s not all bad. January does tend to fly by as people enjoy the last of their summer holidays and get the kids ready for a new school year. It’s also the month where lots of planning happens. If I had a dollar for every project that was starting mid-February … well let’s just say, I’d be writing this blog from a my own tropical island hideaway instead of my cute little office at home.
The thing is though, I’m already finding that it feels a bit like I’ve tried to cram half a year’s work into one month. And I know that if I let this pace continue, I’ll be waking up on Good Friday wondering how the heck it isn’t Christmas Eve yet.
Then I saw this quote from the ever peaceful Thich Nhat Hanh. Just what I needed to snap me back to reality. And I created the little graphic you see here. The photo is my own; I took it on a 2004 trip to Japan. I love this photo and I love this quote. They work well together, don’t you think?
So this then got me thinking about what I can do so that I’m not stressing all the time and feeling like life is passing me by while I work on task after task.
I mean, what more can I possibly do when sometimes I feel like a 36 hour day would still not give me enough time to get everything done?
The answer: I’m giving myself permission to Just.Stop.
Stop stressing. Stop worrying. Stop trying to do everything myself.
How:
Document – I have a screen recorder and good microphone. I can record what I do so someone else can learn how to do it. I can type and use MS Word – I will document the task as I do it, so that I can …
Delegate – Give it to someone else to do. And I must remember that if that someone else can do it, then I should let let them! And if they take it on, I will …
Detach – Give that someone else the opportunity to do it better than I do it. (The control freak in me is terrified at this one!)
And when I have lots of things to be done, for which only I can be responsible, then I will just
Smile, breathe and go slowly.
There you have it. My very own ‘Recovering Control Freak’s Creed’. I’ll let you know how it goes.