Tired of Stress But Afraid of the Change

Are you on that stressed and overwhelmed merry-go-round, but too frozen and afraid to do anything to make it better? I suspect that many busy moms stop short of changing (this means jumping off the overwhelm merry-go-round) because they can't picture what steps they need to take to change, nor can they picture what life would look like without the usual stress. Translating wishful thinking into actions steps requires a plan. This is why the categorized to-do lists I keep incessantly recommending are so useful. Instead of being scattered, you have neat little "piles" of thoughts that go together.

Once you have your thoughts "organized," however, it can be easy to slip right back into overwhelm if you don't have a clear picture of where you are headed in the long run. This goes beyond what you may currently articulate as your priorities, and into long term vision. After all, if you were to fast forward in your mind 20 years, what would you want to have accomplished? Who would you want to be, and who would want your children to have become?

These questions may seem difficult to understand, which is why small changes are crucial. When you practice making tangible changes in your life, you gain the confidence to create even more long-lasting change. For example, if you commit to doing housework on a certain day, start working out again, or learn more by reading (non-fiction)books, you are creating corresponding value in your life. The routine housework creates rhythm and enhances your time management skills, the workouts give you energy to do more, and the reading gives you new knowledge and skills to apply. The victories of more time, energy, and confidence set you up to make bigger positive changes!

Change, however, remains scary. The good news is even that becomes rhythmic. Along the way, you also learn to "embrace plan B." This doesn't mean that you compromise in a negative way, but rather that you realize the picture you painted in your mind has different strokes than you imagined, and that the result will be a better overall creation that you dreamed! A part of this is letting go of perfection. For strategies on being prepared to let go, I highly, highly, highly recommend you read Linda Samuel's BRILLIANT  article outlining ways to ease transitions and all your "plan B" stuff.  Let me know your biggest takeaway from Linda's article, and what you are changing this month or week! If you are still stuck, call my hotline. We have a new quick message up that will get you thinking. It is about 6 minutes long, and you can leave me a message or question! Just call (641) 715-3900 ext 144988#! If you are ready to let go of the status quo but need some guidance, make an appointment with me at the top left of the page!