Do you live in such a way that you always feel rushed, no matter what? It's like you can't ever get caught up and stay that way for more than a minute.
A few weeks ago, for whatever reason, I woke up in a funk and I just couldn't get back on my game no matter what.
After some serious looking at my schedule, I realized what I had done: I put more on my schedule then what was realistic. Since I've been working on going to bed early and getting up early, I've had a lot more breathing room in my schedule. But that doesn't mean that I don't still have to be realistic.
So this day, I just felt stressed, rushed, and overwhelmed. Like I needed to live life at breakneck speed in order to get everything done that needed to be done.
When I got into that mode a few weeks ago, I knew it wasn’t how I wanted to go through my day. So instead of continuing on the hamster wheel of crazy, these were the four things I did to stop feeling rushed:
1. Re-Assess My Schedule and To-Do's
It isn't easy to do this, but I re-assessed my schedule and to-do's and started marking things off my list. I was feeling rushed, because I put too much on my schedule.
That day, I didn't have to write multiple blog posts and clean out my inbox completely like I had put on my to-do list. Those were good things, but they weren’t absolutely necessities.
I also had an appointment with the dentist that I was dreading. It was making me feel stressed on top of an already full day, so I re-scheduled it for a day that I didn't have anything else going on (they were super gracious to allow me to reschedule!).
When you start to feel rushed, evaluate your schedule. What can you cut or move to another day?
Is there something on your to-do list that is causing you to feel extra overwhelmed? I realized it was my dentist appointment that was causing me to feel very stressed (silly, I know, but just keeping it real here). Once I removed it from my day, I wasn't as overwhelmed.
2. Stop Feeling Obligated to Myself and Others
In all honesty, I had put almost all of the the obligations on myself that day. I don't know, maybe I thought I was the productivity queen when I had made my to do list or something! I had added a lot of extra things without thinking about the other things that were already on my plate.
Stop feeling so obligated to yourself or to others. Just take that stuff off your task list for the day. It will be okay. Really examine your heart and your to do list and ask, "Am I feeling obligated to myself or others to do anything on this list?"
3. Ask “What Sparks Joy?”
Even though 2016 is supposed to be my Year of Rest, I forgot about that when I was putting together my schedule on that day I felt super overwhelmed.
Instead of filling up my to-do lists, this year, I am challenging myself to really evaluate what sparks joy in my life. There are definitely going to be some things that I have to do as part of being alive and having a clean and organized home and life. But for everything that’s extra, my barometer for deciding if I should say “yes” to something starts with thinking about my genuine enthusiasm for something.
The more I surround myself with things and projects that truly spark joy, the more encouraged and refreshed I feel.
4. Make Space For My Soul to Breathe
It is so important to take time and let your soul breathe. There are times when I just need to sit and be quiet. I’ve been trying to give myself permission to feel instead of stuff my feelings. To be still instead of feeling like I need to be productive. To take care of myself instead of pushing through when I’m tired.
A question I’ve been asking myself and others is, “What does your soul need right now?” Just being aware of this can make such a difference in the actions and decisions we make.
What do you do when you feel rushed? What helps you break free from living life at breakneck speed?
