As you know, I have been out of contact for several
months. Events happen in our lives over which we
have no control and we do our best to respond.
Such was the case for me, and as I re-establish my
connection I want to share with you what I have
learned.
In my case, the event was the illness of my mother,
who now rests in peace after an amazing 91 years of
life. My life-long lesson from her is no matter how
empty the glass may look, it is actually always
full.
When we have these traumatic experiences in our
life, whether they involve a parent, another family
member, or a dear friend, it is important for each of
us to keep our glass full. How do we keep up our
energy levels and maintain some kind of harmony in
our life? Following are some of the ways I achieved
this for myself.
Your "glass" can be broken down into two aspects:
the physical realm and the mental, or spiritual,
realm. These realms are interdependent, as noted by
Loehr and Schwartz in their book The Power of
Full Engagement. Let's explore the physical
realm first, using my own experience as an
example.
I had a new commitment that consumed a couple of
hours each day - a visit to the hospital. I needed to
pare away other activities in my life to build in this
new commitment. First, I chose to do the thing I
loved most - golfing - to replenish my energy and
keep a balanced outlook. Second, I committed to
that which was of highest value to my clients: being
really present for my coaching and training sessions.
In the rest of my business, I continued with the
things I am best at, and either delegated other tasks
or elected not to do them. Choice is a very powerful
mental tool!
I noticed that when I made an active choice to let
some things go, I didn't fall into the trap of
using sheer willpower to get everything done.
There were two benefits to this: it relieved my
mental stress and provided me with more energy.
The next thing I had to abandon was multi-tasking -
it required too much energy, and it interfered with
being focused and getting my tasks done with ease.
When I broke things down into small, focused bites of
one- or two-hour chunks, it was amazing how much I
accomplished and how little energy I seemed to use.
Now to the mental/spiritual realm. It is important to
not only minimize energy use, it is also important to
refill your energy reservoir. That is why I also
strengthened my spiritual muscle. There are many
ways to do this; what is most important is to be
really present in the moment and fully enjoy what
you are doing. When I was golfing, I would limit my
thinking only to golf. I would look around and notice
the full beauty of the golf course and surrounding
nature. I looked at the beauty of the trees, the
eagles flying overhead and the snow-capped
mountains in the distance. Everything is a miracle!
I would also take ten minutes each morning to
meditate or do breathing exercises to ground myself
for the day. Get into the habit of taking short breaks
throughout the day - this is an effective way to
replenish your energy. The key is to slow down for a
few moments in your hectic day so that you can
continue to go fast.
When you are in a stressful situation like I was, slow
is fast. We maintain our health and our
capacity to be there for our families and our clients.
Wishing you every success in keeping your glass
full,
Jacque
