As we are feeling the tailwind of Summertime blowing in, it’s important to recognize that there are so many opportunities still ahead before the end of the year. Are you open to embracing those moments, to grow and stretch beyond your standard pose? Pausing your routine to intentionally focus on finding and creating openings in your life can help you expand your horizons and uncover more fulfillment. It is one thing to say you will be more intentional, but another thing entirely to do it routinely.
How do you know if you need to be more intentional? For myself, there have been times where I’ve had wake up calls. There are times where my gut is saying one thing and I’m listening and acting on it. Other times, I’m listening but I’m rationalizing as to why no change is needed, simply so I can stay comfortable and predictable. My most recent gut check was a couple of years ago where things had slowed up and I’d finally agreed to take a little vacation.
Vacation Revelation
My husband and I have a motor home and we decided to take it over to the coast and just hang out there for a few days, relax and enjoy the change of scenery. We had our dogs with us, all set up to hang out, enjoy nature, one another and some much needed downtime. Walks, salt air, chill-time. (Read: no work.) That was the plan when we booked the camping space six months earlier. Things had changed some since then and once again, I had my work with me. Yep, my trusty laptop containing drafts, deadlines and expectations for deliverables to send before I returned. Even with good planning for the previous six months, I found myself where I said I would not be again.
For the next few days, I got in a groove and thought I was doing a great job getting up before my husband, getting some work done, leaving us more time together to rest and relax. I thought wrong. I forgot to pause my routine, I wasn’t focused on the experience or the journey and I certainly wasn’t stretching or growing beyond the standard day-to-day tasks I had set out to accomplish. I justified this by remembering I was living up to work commitments and deadlines.
The Hard Truth
When we got home I heard the hard truth when I asked my husband, “Did you enjoy your weekend?” To which he casually replied, “Not really.” It was then that he turned to me and said, “You know, frankly, no, I didn’t have a good time. You were really stressed out, you were focused entirely on work and it would have been better had we not gone.”
My spirit was crushed. I thought I had done so well balancing work duties with vacation time.
And in that one moment, it hit me. I realized that while I was living up to the commitments I had made to my company and to my clients, I was letting down the commitments I had made to myself and my family. I wasn’t being intentional or thoughtful, I was being systematic. That was a huge turning point for me. That’s when it actually clicked. I had to admit to myself that I needed to make a change, but I wasn’t sure what that would look like and that was scary. I truly didn’t know, but it was one of those wake up moments when you know you’re either on the right path or the wrong one. I was on the wrong one.
How do we really know we are on the right path? I believe we all know at our core. We just get disconnected or focused on things we think we should be doing or become. We try to follow someone else’s image or plan for us because we’ve been told it is “the way,” or an outdated story we’ve told ourselves.
Finding your Path – A Journey Through Life
We are on a journey that is unique to each of us, as we all see the world through slightly different lenses. Personally, when I’m on the right path, I feel congruent with myself, a sort of internal peace. I wake up, I feel energetic and excited and I feel like I’m bringing my best self to the day. A byproduct of being on the right path and knowing it, is that I take care of myself. I have the time to prepare meals that are healthy, I have time to exercise, to connect with friends, time to be with my family and I actually take time for my own renewal (which is something we should all make more time for). AND… I am more focused and productive in my work. Those are all positive signs for me that I’m on the right path.
Life is always a juggling act, to some degree, but we can feel better more often when we are being true to ourselves and what we need to be doing to reach our goals. Should you find yourself in need of guidance, or maybe you are looking for help navigating a life change, we highly recommend finding a mentor or a coach to reach out to. Successful people rarely reach their goals alone. Embrace new things, find your tribe and reach out to your network because we all have so much valuable knowledge to share. My inbox is always open, Sarah@SarahBoxx.com or if you prefer, you can leave me a voicemail using the shiny new SpeakPipe widget located on the vertical sidebar of our website, www.SarahBoxx.com. Stick around next week when we publish a follow up article on stretching and growing past your perceived potential.
