Eliminating Overwhelm Part XVI: Pace Yourself to Decrease Stress and Increase Productivity
“I want what I want and I want it NOW!”
Sound familiar? I used to suffer from this malady – this disease of the mind. It’s really kind of childish. As I get older, I am learning a different relationship with time and how long it takes to achieve success in different areas. But, alas, I am a work in progress. I still wish success would hurry up and get here!
Stress levels rise in proportion with the unrealistic demands you place on yourself to get things done.
Either you add more to your plate, adding stress by shrinking the time available to actually accomplish these things.
OR
You have unreasonable ideas about how much time things actually take to accomplish.
In other words, your relationship with time is distorted and you lack a clear understanding – a truthful, honest understanding – of yourself and your abilities as well as how much time is needed to achieve the goal in relation to the other demands on your time.
Most of us have unrealistic ideas or beliefs about how long success takes. We are a ‘gotta-have-it-now society’. We want – and expect – instant gratification and seek the quick fix for everything. That’s why people play the lottery and why get-rich-quick schemes are so popular.
The fantasy is that it should be fast and easy. This mistaken belief causes us much stress, discomfort, and overwhelm.
Success in any endeavor – be it developing a profitable business, saving a million dollars for retirement, finding the love of your life, getting over a bad habit or addiction, or losing those pesky 25 pounds takes time, energy, and focused effort.
Success requires persistence and that means pacing yourself for the long term.
When I was younger, I would often look ahead at what I wanted and was disappointed that I didn’t have it yet. Older, wiser people in my life would say, “Julie, be patient. All good things to those who wait.” But I didn’t want to wait for success. Who wants to wait? I want it NOW!
I never liked the word ‘patient’ and it took me awhile to figure out why because it is considered a great virtue. But ‘patience’ implies that I’m not happy with WHAT IS and that I want something different. Which may, in fact be true, but because I am focused on being ‘patient’, I am constantly reminded of what I don’t have that I really want, and because of the longing, I am unhappy with where I am right now.
‘Patience’ is a passive word that has me focus on sitting back and waiting for something to happen, whereas ‘pacing myself’ implies action.
By choosing to pace myself, I trust that success will come at some point in the future so long as I do my part; I stay busy and engaged in creating whatever it is I want; and I focus on enjoying the process of getting there. Instead of waiting and wishing, I am focused on taking actions that will help me achieve my goal.
Bottom line coaching tip: Learn to pace yourself with whatever goal to choose to commit to. Add small, daily or weekly activities that will add value and move you toward your goal. Trust that eventually you will achieve success.
The journey of a thousand miles begins and continues by taking one step at a time – it’s not a sprint but rather a marathon. Pace yourself and you eliminate the stress that builds from overwhelm when you want it all right now. ‘Pacing’ forces you to look at the bigger picture and the long term, something most of us struggle with. Take one day at a time and contact me for a free coaching session if you desire support.
Your partner for success,
Coach Julie ~ Nurturing Your Success
