You know how sometimes the thing to do with a stuck drawer is to gently set it back into its resting position? Even though all you want is to yank the dang thing out, grab what you need and run out the door?
I just returned from a reunion retreat with my Master Coach class, and let me tell you, I am un-stuck! Ideas and inspiration are flowing like crazy! I’m so excited to serve you in new ways!
A destination retreat is a wonderful way to rejuvenate and clear away stickiness. I hope you’re planning one in the near future. AND: I’m all about straightforward steps you can take right now. Here’s a deceptively simple step to restore your creativity, productivity, and flow in just 5 minutes, right where you are.
It was this very approach that helped me turn the corner to better health and vitality. Without it, I was too sick and too stuck to do much of anything, much less connect with you here or go on a destination retreat.
Sticking points.
When I look back on my earlier years of hyper-productivity, work obsession, and getting by with very little sleep, it’s not hard to see how I set myself up for burnout, chronic illness, and some serious (involuntary) down time. Yep, I got stuck alright. After years of forcing the drawer open, of course it jammed!
There are so many ways we can become overwhelmed, stuck. For me, it was running my first business while isolated from the support of friends and family. What thoughts and responsibilities roll around your mind much of the time, make up your mental load?
Luckily, my body knew how to get un-stuck.
I didn’t want to slow down or lighten up. Nope, I wanted to get more done! I had big plans, work to do. And who has the option to relax? Who has time?
So my body went on strike. I became too sick to work. And thank goodness, because that got my attention. More about that here and how it led me to find my calling.
Eventually I – by that I mean my mind – bought in. The old way of simply working more and harder hadn’t worked. It was time to try something new.
I took an amazing online course called Surf Lessons (now available as a book here), by another Master Coach, Nona Jordan. One of her lessons was to create a “playlist,” a list of ways I could play on the regular. I was totally stuck. I couldn’t think of one thing I could do from my sick bed. But I could remember the ways I had once played – snowboarding, kayaking, hiking – and those memories filled me with grief and longing.
Nona suggested coloring.
“Lame,” I thought. “But fine, I’ll color … when I’ve been well enough to complete a few hours of productive work,”
“No,” Nona said.
“Play first. Even for five minutes.”
My head exploded. Didn’t she understand I had a business to run and how hard it was from under the leaden weight of chronic illness? I’ll venture a guess that your mind is listing myriad responsibilities you should be doing rather than playing.
But yanking on the drawer and strong-arming myself into production jammed me up in the first place. Ever the good student and high-performer, I gave it a shot.
I colored for a few minutes, in bed.
Begrudgingly.
And guess what? It turned out to be fun.
The more I colored, the more lighthearted I felt, and the burden of my fears and responsibilities lifted. And you know what? I gradually regained endurance, energy, and enthusiasm to cross off a few items on my to do list. I eventually regained enough vitality to play outside! All because I colored for 5 minutes.
Rest. Play. Rest. Play.
My return to flow was directly proportional to my surrendering the fight. And my increasing flow of energy and creativity stems from regularly returning to my resting position, to my once-natural state of playful curiosity. Just like a stuck drawer.
When I dropped work or thoughts of work, even for a few minutes, my health, vitality, and, you guessed it, my work, began to flow! Nowadays I have so much fun that I think of work as Plurk. Play + Work = Plurk
So, I hope you’re not a sick or as stuck as I was. I hope you’re fired up and having fun in your work and in your life. I hope you’re enjoying rest and play and the whole spectrum of your life.
But if you’re stuck, a little or a lot, want to prevent getting jammed up, or would love more flow, creativity, and vitality, here’s my prescription for you:
Set aside some time, on the regular, to rest and play your body and mind, to change things us, to retreat from your day-in day-out responsibilities, thinking, and striving.
Start with just five minutes, to play, first.
What’s on your playlist?
As Nona would say, “Tell me everything.”
[disclosure: if you click on one of the above links and buy from Amazon.com, I will receive a small commission. This is what is known as an “affiliate link” and I’m required by law to disclose this fact to you, dear reader.]