Oh man. It’s happening again !!!!!!
Another rule change to implement and this on top of another change in regulation, another additional education requirement, another change to how we work and having to do all this just to keep pace with the changes to our profession (when I was a financial planner) we aspire to be great at, so we can continue to do what we love i.e., help our clients.
It doesn’t blindside me. It’s more like a mix of groundhog day and being a frog slowly boiled, “grenouilles bouille” for the Francofiles, “yudegaeru” to the Japanese and “rana hervida” to the Spanish speakers among us.
But then it happens. I need to get shit done
Burnout, exhaustion, apathy whatever you call it; the bottom line is that it all gets too hard. Everything that is outside my control and that I wrongly thought was in my control gets the better of me. these feeling not only undermine even what I know is in my control but just can’t do anything, anymore.
I know it’s wrong, but to take my mind off my guilt, I'll start checking on my social media accounts.
Obviously, this makes me feel worse and at best distracted and even guiltier. Making me feel even more worthless and sapped of energy, because I'm not out there slaying dragons and conquering the world.
Enter the spiral down of self-loathing aided by procrastination, search for soothing industry news wanting to hear others complain (soothing to see it’s not only me), junk food and motivational YouTube videos.
I tell myself that I could stay here, throw in the towel, retire even and wallow in my mire of self-loathing.
But I can’t. In my current state it’s too exhausting, it won’t make my problem go away and I tell myself I'm no failure!
Only by doing the work to be done, will solve the current brain fog and self loathing quagmire I feel myself in..
So, I tell myself even making one step forward will bring me closer to finishing what I must do, rather than remaining where I am now in my thoughts and not moving forward at all.
I remind myself and need to be reminded that it’s ok to feel exhausted at times. Not beat myself up so much and be so hard on myself.
So rather than taking once again the insanity approach, (Definition of insanity is doing the same thing time and time again and expecting a different outcome) of busting through the wall of my to do’s.
I have taken to a gentler; one may say holistic approach to my to-do-list.
An approach that is designed to have me lean more into one of acceptance, empowerment, and encouragement i.e., the foundations of self-worth, mental and emotional strength.
More than simply breaking things down into easier smaller steps, I have had to consciously change my approach.
The foundation of this is instead of a To-Do-List. Now I have a Can-Do-List.
Instead of just doing the work and it feeling never ending, I tell myself each day to Finish Strong.
Reminding myself that if I am brave enough to start something then I’m strong enough to finish it!
And when I start to feel overwhelmed, I’ll take regular breaks. Be it exercise, writing this blog, or just jawboning with friends. Bottom line is that it has to be fun and lift my spirits!
I have been applying these three simple and easy to apply approaches to my life for the last 14 days and I can honestly say that it has significantly helped me move from a can’t do to a just try it attitude. From a just try it attitude, to a can do attitude, and from a can do attitude, to a just did it results.
If you are stuck in a funk or you’re lost in a cloud of complexity feel free to contact me. Most often in life we just need someone to talk things through and to lighten our load a little.
This post was written by Me, as such they are my personal views and not financial or general advice.
You should always seek independent financial advice when it comes to choices about your personal finances. This is one area of your life where it’s worth paying for it to be done right.
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