I am constantly reminded how important it is, for daily happiness, lasting peace of mind and to achieve what you are wanting from life, to be mindful of when you are resisting doing things that you may not like or find too difficult or too boring – and do them anyway!
Life is made up of a series of activities that need doing. Some will be simple and fun, some will be simple but not that much fun and most (I find) are challenging and not that simple until I’ve spent heaps of time learning and taking action on whatever it is I’m finding challenging. Then, when I’ve mastered the challenge and achieved the goal, it’s off to the next activity and next goal!
I say that I find most things challenging but then I have always had quite big goals that were a long way from where I started in life and way ahead of what I’d originally thought I could achieve.
These days, I still have lofty goals but as I’m older, more experienced and somewhat wiser, I mostly deal with learning, obstacles and setbacks in a calmer and more detached manner. I’m here and present in whatever it is I am doing but I’m not as emotionally attached to the outcome – sometimes!
I’m reminded of the phrase “do it and you’ll have the energy to do it“. I’d like to give credit here to whoever coined that phrase but I’ve read so many books on personal development and self improvement that I can’t recall who said this. (apologies if you happen to read this post and please let me know who you are!)
Usually, if you put things off that you know are best for you to do, you will feel restless and unrewarded and will often look for distractions in order to avoid. You will become good at convincing yourself that you are busy anyway so you can justify your avoidance. You can justify all those hours you spent not doing the thing you want and need to do because you were busy – but often not in the most conducive manner for the result and success you are wanting.
Sometimes confidence can be lacking as we don’t know how to do something so again, we avoid. I’ve found the solution to this is to break things down into small bits and take one little step at a time, stop regularly for some deep breaths, ask for help if needed and be sure to note at the end of your day just what you have achieved, no matter how small it may appear to be. I’ve found that if I lump it all in together I start worrying that I can’t do it, but if I keep my focus on taking smaller steps, I don’t feel overwhelmed.
When I started setting up my Blog, I had almost no idea of what to do and how to do it but here I am now, writing and sharing with you and although it’s still a work in progress, I’ve come such a long way despite the fact that there were many times I didn’t want to continue because it all seemed too hard and too confusing to me. And, I’m now enjoying the process greatly!
Taking specific action, regardless of how much you may be resisting, will ensure you get where you actually want to go. It’s best to be clear on where you want to go.
All which you used to avoid will bring you great sweetness and exceeding joy
St. Francis.
Hey “Jimmie” – thanks for sharing your words of wisdom and your experiences. I like your analogy of “monster in the closet” compared to “little puppy”. Yep – go get stuck into that college application – you will feel so great when it’s done and in the mail!
Glad you like the Blog design and thanks for your help and comments! xx
Thank you for reminding me to ‘feel the feelings and do it anyway’!! SO TRUE. I have experienced it myself how whatever I am avoiding…when I face it (finally) it’s 99% of the time NOTHING! I coined this as the ‘monster in the closet’ syndrome…because just like some illusion being projected onto a screen…when I think something is a really hideous task and am afraid of it..when I finally have the courage to open the door, it was only a little puppy! (that was projected onto a wall/screen and looked like a ginormous monster!)
So…I so appreciate this reminder…because I need to start my application process for college/university this week and I have been avoiding to do that for some reason so…here I come!!! Life is like that ey? One baby step at a time done consistently will create leaps and bounds in life before I know it.
Thank you for this beautiful post! Keep up the faaaabulous work..the website looks so inviting, light and appealing!! Great color scheme and choice of tabs/feeling/design… 🙂
With kudos,
Jimmie
You are an inspiration to many Deb! Thanks for your enthusiastic comments! I hope between us all we can inspire and help others through this site.
I have been very fortunate to be able to put into practice some of these strategies taught by Wendy over the last 8 years & I can tell you from experience that they work. Simple, everyday practices that can really improve your life, procratination was an enemy of mine until I broke things down into managable sizes. You have nothing to lose by trying some really great advice by a really great lady!
Hi Sophy,
Thanks for your positive comments! I am thrilled to hear that the “Do It Anyway” post has assisted you to get clear, feel motivated and take appropriate actions. Well done and I look forward to hearing more of your great achievements both big and small. Although I don’t see any achievements as being small as they all go towards the bigger picture!
I have been stuck in a rut, unmotivated and practicing the art of avoidance for a long time. After reading your blog, I have started setting small goals for myself on a daily basis (Not biting off too much than I can chew which as you say leaves you feeling extremely overwhelmed!). Thank you so much Wendy! I am not only achieving my daily list of “To do’s” but so much more and I have never felt so motivated and inspired to achieve not only the daily mundane tasks but so much more new and exciting things!