A common consequence of the busy lives we lead nowadays is that many of us often find ourselves in a state of overwhelm. I know I do! It feels like there there’s always so much to do on my never-ending to-do list and never enough hours to get it all done.

Even though overwhelm appears to be about doing and having lots to do, it’s actually a state of being first. Believe it or not, it is possible to have lots to do and not feel overwhelmed. There are many more states you can be in that will make you more productive. In fact, judging from the effect it has, it seems like overwhelm is about not getting anything done!

Overwhelm makes you feel like it’s motivating you to be efficient but really it’s a state of being that stems from fear. You are being driven by a fear of a negative consequence of some kind, and your focus is solely on the outcome, which takes the joy out of the process. Remember, it’s not just about the destination but the journey.

Overwhelm is also about not being present to the unfolding of your life as it is right now and comes from future-based thoughts which lead you to stress and worry. Although you may feel that focussing on what you have to do makes you do it, the reverse is true. Overwhelm makes you less efficient and productive, and everything ends up being much harder than it needs to be.

How many times do you feel you don’t have enough time? How often can you be heard using that over-used phrase “there’s just not enough hours in the day”? You’re probably in the trance of busy-ness? Everyone’s so busy nowadays, but what exactly are we all busy doing?

What I’m about to say may hurt but I’m still going to say it. The truth is most of us are busy doing stuff that’s of no real significance. None if it will matter in 1, 5 or even 10 years time. We fill our days to bursting with tasks and appointments which make us feel important as we run around like headless chickens flapping our arms in the air, going on and on about how busy we are and how little time we have for ourselves. We can become addicted to the drama of it all, in a trance until something of real meaning snaps us out of it.

You’ve got to surround yourself with good people because no matter who you are, it can be very hard to see your own stuff. That’s why a good coach will have a good coach. I’m fortunate to have some wonderfully insightful people in my life and one of them is my beautiful little sister.

I recently found myself in a seriously funky mood and had no idea why. I vented to my sister who turned to me and simply said “it sounds like you’re upset because certain things are not living up to your expectations.”

Lightbulb moment! She was right. I had set extremely high expectations for a call I did, but after the call I felt like I had done a terrible job.  (In hindsight, it was all illusion there was nothing wrong with the call!)

This sent me into a downward spiral fuelled by some negative self-talk. As soon as my sister told me what she could see it was very clear – I was beating myself up for failing.

To some people money and worry go together like salt and pepper. They worry about how they are going to pay their bills, how they are going to afford a new kitchen, whether or not the interest rates will go up, where to put their savings, heck they worry about whether they can even afford to save! This chronic worrying has become an accepted part of managing money, so much so that people that do not worry about money are viewed as living in cloud cuckoo land or simply being in denial. After all, worrying about money is what responsible people do isn’t it?  Maybe, maybe not, I can tell you one thing I know for sure, it’s not what wealthy people do. And if it’s wealth you are after,

I first heard the Broken Dreams poem during Rev. Dr. Lorraine Cohen and Rev. Anita Pathik Law’s Aligning with Destiny course (which I highly recommend by the way) and loved it immediately and hope you do too:

Broken Dreams

As children bring their broken toys
With tears for us to mend
I brought my broken dreams to God
Because He was my friend

But then instead of leaving Him
In peace to work alone
I hung around and tried to help
In ways that were my own

At last I snatched them back and cried
”How could You be so slow?”
”My child” He said, “What could I do?
You never did let go?”

By Robert J. Burdette

I think we can all relate to that, I know I can….

The sleep deprivation from having a baby is brutal. It’s getting better but I am generally operating from a slightly tired place most of the time. My son is nearly 9 months old and until recently needed a feed in the middle of the night, every night.

Don’t you just love a-ha moments?

They’re a bit like looking at an optical illusion; you spend time focusing on the image knowing there is something there that you cannot see and then BINGO something in your perspective shifts and you see it!

Now you see it, it seems so blindingly obvious that you wonder how you never saw it before. But now you do, you’ll never look at that picture the same way again.

I’d like to share an a-ha moment I had recently with you all which has fundamentally deepened the way I think about the often-used, throwaway phrase “getting things off your chest.” How many times have you heard that phrase? Countless times, right?  “It’s good to get things off your chest,” “Why don’t you tell him/her and get it off your chest?”…. You probably use it yourself God knows how many times a day.

“In preparing for battle, I have often found that plans are useless but planning is indispensable” Dwight D. Eisenhower

After having most of last year off having a baby I was really looking forward to getting back to work and implementing all that I had been inspired to during my time away. I have big plans for this year and in January sat down with my coach to put legs under this plan.

We set big goals for February that excited me and I was filled by this strong knowing that “I can do this, bring it on.” Then BANG, I found myself so rundown, I had to move into my Mum’s for a week!

Bummer! What the hell was going on? I had big plans, why was this happening to me? How was I going to reach my February targets?

Now I no longer believe in the old twaddle about being tested or even it being a form of self-sabotage. Mentally, I knew I should surrender but I just couldn’t fully let go. I had moved into my Mother’s, wasn’t that enough? The desire in me to keep pushing against what was happening was strong, I wanted to be in full control but my health just wasn’t getting any better.