Over time, we’ve reached the point where experiencing overwhelm, and nonstop stress is considered a natural way of being in our fast-paced environment. I know—there is so much to do and so little time. And look, I’m not just talking about you. I have to stop myself and practice what I preach!
Let me ask you this: At what point in time do you dash for your phone charger to replenish the battery? When it turns yellow? Or do you wait for the warning light when you can barely see the thin red bar? Either way, you get the little master on the charger. You understand the urgency—you can’t be without your phone, and you make sure you power it up, right? Of course.
Now, answer honestly: Do you have an oddly balanced concern for your phones, computers, and cars compared to yourself?
When I walked for 13 straight days across England’s 192-mile Coast to Coast Walk, it gave me a lot of time to just be. I experienced a very unique stillness in nature even though I was always on the move. And it made me understand how much we can learn from letting go of all the busy little important things with which we fill our lives.
To be with oneself, to be ‘stuck’ without phone service until the next village, meant claiming the many hours during the day to quietly take one symbolic step in front of the other.
You may ask: How do I find the time to just be with myself?
You get it done the same way you find the time for your dental appointment, the same way you meet a client for lunch, and the same way you get the report out by its due date.
You schedule it.
You sit with your calendar at the start of each quarter, each month, and each week, and you make sure that you mark ME Time! Because without it, you will lose your edge (and not recognize it), you could lose your health (and find out about it when you wake up in an emergency room), or you could forfeit a relationship (because you couldn’t stop to take someone by the hand).
Dramatic?
Not by any means. The consequences of not finding time to just be can Be the difference between the life you dream of and a sadly unfulfilled life. Let’s meet here this time next week and take a deeper dive into how you can find the time to Be.
And … remember to schedule it!
