Hi there, Space Makers!
Today is a good day to ask yourself three questions as you envision the days ahead:
How do I want to feel?
In an ideal world, what would need to happen for me to feel that way?
And, finally, since we don’t live in an ideal world…
What is the shortcut to feeling the way I want to feel?
While I know that I can’t necessarily control how I feel at a given moment, I always find it helpful to ask these questions when I am busy, stressed, or have a lot to do.
Focusing on how I want to feel (and how to create my best chances to feel that way) helps me to figure out my priorities. It helps me to identify key tasks and to make decisions about the other items on my list.
For example, on Friday, I had a get-together for a group of close friends and I had envisioned serving a few special snacks and making something really cool for our gift exchange.
Alas, my Friday went a bit sideways, as days sometimes do, and I found myself at 3:30 with a lot of tasks and not nearly enough time to do them.
So, I asked myself how I wanted to feel that evening and I settled on ‘relaxed.’
And I knew I wouldn’t feel relaxed if I tried to rush through my too-long list.
In fact, having lots of experience with trying to push through too many tasks in too little time (I don’t always remember to ask myself the important questions above), I knew that that would result in me feeling flustered, bedraggled and kinda cranky as the party started. And that is not a recipe for a good time – it is no fun having to ‘catch up’ to everyone else’s relaxation levels!
So, I thought about what I needed to feel relaxed and settled on the shortest possible list to create those conditions. I did a bit of tidying up, took the dog for a walk while I brainstormed a quick but fun thing for the gift exchange, decided on a quick supper and a shortened version of the special snacks.
And I got dressed for the party as soon as it was feasible instead of leaving it until the last minute. That way, no matter what else got done, I was already ready for the fun part of the evening.
It ended up being a really fun night that was made even better by the fact that I was relaxed right from the start.
Now, I recognize that my party example is pretty low stakes compared to some of the other things you or I might be trying to get done between now and the end of the year but I think that using ‘How do I want to feel?’ as a guideline could be beneficial now matter how complicated the situation might be.
You may not be able to generate the perfect conditions to feel the way you want to feel but I think you’ll be able to give yourself a little more space and to reduce your stress a bit.
Whether you start with the questions above or try something completely different, I wish you ease and lots of space for yourself today. 💚
Now, onto our suggested practices:
For our movement today, here’s Dr. Andrea Furlan with Senior Fitness Made Simple: 10 Minute Chair Routine
Our mindfulness practice for today is a 5 Minute Meditation for Relaxation and Positive Energy from Lavendaire
