Striving Words...
Take the gentle path...George Herbert
How hard we all try to achieve things.......& how many different things we try to achieve. No wonder so many of us are so tired. Sometimes life is like a continuous uphill climb. So, no matter what you are looking to achieve in your personal & business life or in creative endeavors, be they at your computer or on the playing field, it's a good idea to keep a look-out for this potentially dangerous mind-state.
Often when we are alone or in our regular life-patterns, it isn't as noticeable, unless someone draws our attention to it, at which point most of us would become defensive. Here are some catch-phrases that come my way....This is just the way I am or If I don't keep working hard, I'll never amount to anything. Or.......Leave me alone. I know what I'm doing. Do you?
I just came back from spending a weekend with 35 strivers, all under one roof. It was a meeting of publishers & writers, each one on a separate mission for success, including myself. Quite frankly, I'm mentally & physically exhausted. And while the meeting was excellent & had a very positive energy, being around any striving-energy can be depleting & especially when it is your own.
Like many meetings, this one was filled with so much information, that I could feel my mind setting up protective blocks....actually backing up from the continuous barrage being thrown at it. To make matters worse, it was Saturday & my creative mind is not used to this type of treatment once Friday has passed. But, this was an important meeting, so of course, I wanted & needed to stay focused. However, the more I pushed myself to do this, the more my mind rejected my personal demands.
Perhaps you've found yourself in a similar scenario. Most of my patients & students tend to strive & then to suffer from the striving, some actually burning out, for as I mentioned above, striving is contagious, even within ourselves. The more we tend to strive, the quicker we seem to burn!
Here are some suggestions for dealing with a striving-nature....
1. Watch out for it. Most of us have the tendency to effort or push ourselves & ifyou are an A-type personality, you will have higher levels of this trait. It's important to be honest with yourself & avoid defending what you know to be true. Keep in mind that you are the person who will pay the piper.
2. Make plans for it. I don't go to many meetings & so, sometimes I forget about it until I'm in the middle of the problem. However, once it rears it's head, I'm ready. First, I need to realign my goals for being at the meeting. I may need to remind myself that it isn't necessary for me to absorb everything that is presented or discussed. This is a letting-go subconscious mind suggestion & a very powerful one. It tends to break that perfectionistic, obsessive-compulsive, tension-building mind & body set.....an enemy to creativity, concentration & focus.
3. Lighten up. While this is a bit like step 2, it is more in keeping with the mind programs of having fun & actually enjoying the learning process. When I'm working with clients of mine who are in school, no matter what the level, I find that they often need new or restructured mind programs in this department. So, how do we purposefully lighten up?
A very simple exercise is to take a cleansing breath, sense magnets pulling you down into the chair, tilt your eyes up just about 20 degrees & see/sense yourself having a good time, of course, appropriate for the place & time. It's not necessary to image this as a Disneyland experience! Remember that the mind will follow the body.........so a good emotionalized image is all that is necessary.
4. Watch what you eat & drink. Always have a good nutritious breakfast that includes protein & whole grains. Limit your caffeine & sugar intake. It's almost par for the course that meeting break foods will include plenty of caffeinated drinks, sugars & refined foods. Watch those candies & mints that are often placed on the writing tables. These types of foods play havoc with blood sugar levels & therefore build emotional roller-coasters. They make it more difficult to stay relaxed & focued...........thus increasing the desire to strive.
5. Observe your communication skills. Are you spending more time speaking than actively listening? Are you feeling the need to sell yourself to others? This is a good opportunity to stay in awareness & inhance your listening. Sense yourself enjoying this & if the little mind voices come to tell you that you are missing opportunities, remind yourself that this is not so. A good listener tends to make a better impression that one who talks to much. If you tend to have social anxiety, make note of this. Bring back that earlier image of being deeply relaxed & enjoying the party.
6. Trust your mind to do the necessary listening. When the mind & body is well-nourished & relaxed, you can program it to do the listening for you. Here is how to place those suggestions..... as above, take a cleansing breath, deepen & tilt your eyes up gently. See & sense the information coming from the speaker & entering your own mind. Notice how relaxed you are & how easy this process is for you. Celebrate this.
Know that this is not New Age but instead, suggestions relating to emotional crayons that energize the imagery on the mind screen. Keep in mind that the right side of the brain likes emotion in relation to any suggestion. However, it's in your best interest to keep the suggestions & the emotions positive. It's just as easy to program your mind for what you don't want & then to emotionalize it in a negative fashion. Not a good idea, so pay attention to what you are doing...
ARCHIVED BLOG
I'm awake for any & all striving. As I let go, my creativity enhances....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Offerings for Publishers, Editors & Agents
Beyond Disorderly Eating...The Truth About Sugar & Bingeing & How to Stop
mindSCRABBLE...The Game of Programming Your Mind for What You Want
It's Time to Stop...Nail Biting - Book & Interactive Self-Hypnosis CD
Take the gentle path...George Herbert
How hard we all try to achieve things.......& how many different things we try to achieve. No wonder so many of us are so tired. Sometimes life is like a continuous uphill climb. So, no matter what you are looking to achieve in your personal & business life or in creative endeavors, be they at your computer or on the playing field, it's a good idea to keep a look-out for this potentially dangerous mind-state.
Often when we are alone or in our regular life-patterns, it isn't as noticeable, unless someone draws our attention to it, at which point most of us would become defensive. Here are some catch-phrases that come my way....This is just the way I am or If I don't keep working hard, I'll never amount to anything. Or.......Leave me alone. I know what I'm doing. Do you?
I just came back from spending a weekend with 35 strivers, all under one roof. It was a meeting of publishers & writers, each one on a separate mission for success, including myself. Quite frankly, I'm mentally & physically exhausted. And while the meeting was excellent & had a very positive energy, being around any striving-energy can be depleting & especially when it is your own.
Like many meetings, this one was filled with so much information, that I could feel my mind setting up protective blocks....actually backing up from the continuous barrage being thrown at it. To make matters worse, it was Saturday & my creative mind is not used to this type of treatment once Friday has passed. But, this was an important meeting, so of course, I wanted & needed to stay focused. However, the more I pushed myself to do this, the more my mind rejected my personal demands.
Perhaps you've found yourself in a similar scenario. Most of my patients & students tend to strive & then to suffer from the striving, some actually burning out, for as I mentioned above, striving is contagious, even within ourselves. The more we tend to strive, the quicker we seem to burn!
Here are some suggestions for dealing with a striving-nature....
1. Watch out for it. Most of us have the tendency to effort or push ourselves & ifyou are an A-type personality, you will have higher levels of this trait. It's important to be honest with yourself & avoid defending what you know to be true. Keep in mind that you are the person who will pay the piper.
2. Make plans for it. I don't go to many meetings & so, sometimes I forget about it until I'm in the middle of the problem. However, once it rears it's head, I'm ready. First, I need to realign my goals for being at the meeting. I may need to remind myself that it isn't necessary for me to absorb everything that is presented or discussed. This is a letting-go subconscious mind suggestion & a very powerful one. It tends to break that perfectionistic, obsessive-compulsive, tension-building mind & body set.....an enemy to creativity, concentration & focus.
3. Lighten up. While this is a bit like step 2, it is more in keeping with the mind programs of having fun & actually enjoying the learning process. When I'm working with clients of mine who are in school, no matter what the level, I find that they often need new or restructured mind programs in this department. So, how do we purposefully lighten up?
A very simple exercise is to take a cleansing breath, sense magnets pulling you down into the chair, tilt your eyes up just about 20 degrees & see/sense yourself having a good time, of course, appropriate for the place & time. It's not necessary to image this as a Disneyland experience! Remember that the mind will follow the body.........so a good emotionalized image is all that is necessary.
4. Watch what you eat & drink. Always have a good nutritious breakfast that includes protein & whole grains. Limit your caffeine & sugar intake. It's almost par for the course that meeting break foods will include plenty of caffeinated drinks, sugars & refined foods. Watch those candies & mints that are often placed on the writing tables. These types of foods play havoc with blood sugar levels & therefore build emotional roller-coasters. They make it more difficult to stay relaxed & focued...........thus increasing the desire to strive.
5. Observe your communication skills. Are you spending more time speaking than actively listening? Are you feeling the need to sell yourself to others? This is a good opportunity to stay in awareness & inhance your listening. Sense yourself enjoying this & if the little mind voices come to tell you that you are missing opportunities, remind yourself that this is not so. A good listener tends to make a better impression that one who talks to much. If you tend to have social anxiety, make note of this. Bring back that earlier image of being deeply relaxed & enjoying the party.
6. Trust your mind to do the necessary listening. When the mind & body is well-nourished & relaxed, you can program it to do the listening for you. Here is how to place those suggestions..... as above, take a cleansing breath, deepen & tilt your eyes up gently. See & sense the information coming from the speaker & entering your own mind. Notice how relaxed you are & how easy this process is for you. Celebrate this.
Know that this is not New Age but instead, suggestions relating to emotional crayons that energize the imagery on the mind screen. Keep in mind that the right side of the brain likes emotion in relation to any suggestion. However, it's in your best interest to keep the suggestions & the emotions positive. It's just as easy to program your mind for what you don't want & then to emotionalize it in a negative fashion. Not a good idea, so pay attention to what you are doing...
ARCHIVED BLOG
I'm awake for any & all striving. As I let go, my creativity enhances....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Offerings for Publishers, Editors & Agents
Beyond Disorderly Eating...The Truth About Sugar & Bingeing & How to Stop
mindSCRABBLE...The Game of Programming Your Mind for What You Want
It's Time to Stop...Nail Biting - Book & Interactive Self-Hypnosis CD
posted by ElizRN at 12:25 PM
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