You work your tail off to get things done. You find ways to do things efficiently (you have actually gotten really good at this) and you still have to put the sweat, blood, tears and hours in, and often it takes longer than you planned. You end up feeling lousy because it “takes you so long to do things,” thinking that your aunt or your sister-in-law could have done it in half the time – right? If you’re not criticizing yourself for not doing enough, then you disparage yourself for taking on too much – though you can’t imagine what you could possibly leave undone. Especially during certain times of the year, or even certain years, or in certain phases there is just so much to do it can feel truly overwhelming. Holiday time and extra travel can certainly leave me feeling this way. Here is a secret trick I have learned that ALWAYS helps:
- Remind yourself that this phase is temporary. Though it’s hard to see the end of it, there are certain things you can do that will help in the short run.
- Make a list of AAAAALLLLLL the things that have to be done right now.
- Re-write the list so that it is actually 2 lists:
A. The things I can and will do today (or tomorrow)
B. The rest
- Ask your spiritual helpers, your higher self and the Universe to help you with everything on the B list while you are working as hard as you can on the A list (some call this God). They can, will, and are already, but you have to take these items off the A list and ask your helpers for this to work really well.
- Focus your attention on what you have decided that you can do today.
- Each day, appreciate yourself for the items that you were able to get off the A list, reassess what you will commit to completing during the next day or two (or hour or two), and in the process notice how some of the things on the B list are taking care of themselves or progressing in some way that you did not have to be involved in.
- Thank yourself for remembering that getting things done is actually of secondary importance. Being a decent person and staying connected to yourself and your loved ones is of primary importance – always.
- Notice and appreciate the help you are receiving from the Universe and from others and marvel at the magic you can do when you let go and focus only on what you can control.
- Go easy on yourself. It never helps to chastise yourself for not having the help you need.
- There are things on that list that only you can and should do. There are other things on the list that will take care of themselves on their own. Over time you may see things that you’d love to ask others to help you with. But when you solicit the help of others remember that they may also be feeling the stress of their own responsibilities, regardless of how it appears.
- Ask your helpers to send you someone who would benefit from helping you (truly helping, truly capable, bringing positivity into your life).
- Putting items in your B list is trusting that you can be truly and abundantly supported, and letting go of rigid ideas about how things will turn out. If you can loosen your grip on them, you may be surprised at how they turn out even better than you expected!