Bring In the Backhoe – When you feel like you have too much To Do to Allow

We have learned that getting things done requires our thinking, doing and planning.  But when our action doesn’t feel good, it is disconnected from universal energy and it’s not effective.  It has no power behind it.

Working when you’re disconnected from universal energy is like trying to dig the foundation of a building with a teaspoon.  It feels hard, overwhelming, and like you’ll never get it done.

Our minds think the solution to this problem is to work more, work harder, and work faster.  But really, how effective is it to shovel dirt faster with a teaspoon?  The solution isn’t to work faster and harder, it’s to bring in the heavy equipment.

How?

By doing what feels good, otherwise known as Allowing. When we feel good we’re connected to our inner guidance.  We’re accessing universal energy.  We’re using a backhoe instead of the teaspoon.

In reality this is not that easy to trust. I often find myself thinking, ”If I don’t do it, who’s going to?  Dinner isn’t going to prepare itself.  The computer isn’t going to fix itself. The house won’t clean itself.  My blog post and ebook won’t write themselves.”

Or will they?

I have to say, I’m a master at dropping the struggle and effort with the little things. Like when something breaks, or I have a disagreement with a friend, or my daughter has a problem I want to help her with.  With those things, I let go and allow and they almost always work out.

Easy Peasy.

But bigger things?  Not so much.  As I build my coaching practice and look at my exponentially expanding To Do list I easily fall into I have to DOOO all this. Which is followed closely by the thought “There’s no way I can do all this.”  Followed closely by overwhelm and panic.

I’ve tried everything to Feel Good and reconnect with universal energy.

I’ve worked with my thoughts.

I’ve had coaches help me work with my thoughts.

I’ve made peace with where I am.

I’ve raised my vibe, scripted, what if’ed, and pivoted my heart out.

I’ve meditated and channeled.

I’ve released the need.

I’ve intended.

And still, I regularly ended up at overwhelmed and afraid and shoveling away with my teaspoon.

And then I began training to be a mind-body coach.

And now I’m learning how to observe my mind, body, and emotions.  I observe and then listen – without trying to change anything.  And my inner guidance is starting to come through loud and clear.

I’ve known for a while that my emotions are guidance. But the reality was that most of the time when I noticed painful or uncomfortable feelings, I immediately tried to change them.  I immediately tried to Feel Better.

I was seeing uncomfortable emotions as a sign that I was thinking or doing something wrong, instead of what they really are – real live guidance about how to proceed.

What I’ve been learning the last few weeks is that we each carry around more wisdom than all the teachers and coaches on the planet combined.  And, our guidance is unique and specific to us. And, it comes through our body and our emotions.

Being with my body and my emotions, as they are, feels like coming home.

I see that I’ve been running away from my feelings.  I didn’t think I was, but I also didn’t really think I was supposed to have them.

And as a result, I wasn’t paying close enough attention to what was going on inside.

Yesterday my TO DO list overwhelm struck and instead of pushing to do more, I lay down and felt what was going on in my body.  I allowed it to be there and heard the wisdom that was coming through.  The message was “SLOW DOWN”.  Slow down and feel.

As counter intuitive as it seemed I decided to do just that.  I pulled out my journal to jot down my insights and in less than 10 minutes, without trying, out flowed the outline for this blog post.

I put down my teaspoon for a few minutes and the backhoe did the digging.  Easy.  Effortless. Fun.

If you’re TO DO list is threatening to take over your life follow these 3 simple steps.

1) Notice how you’re feeling.

Check in with yourself regularly and ask, “How am I feeling?”  Listen closely for the subtle feelings.  Don’t wait to be in full-blown overwhelm to notice.  Stay on top of what’s happening in your body.

2) Put down the teaspoon.

When you don’t feel good, stop.  Lie down, and observe.  Scan your body from the tips of your toes to the top of your head.  Notice every sensation.  ALLOW it to be there, allow it to move and change and flow.

3) Bring in the Backhoe.

Connect to your inner guidance.  Ask you body and your emotions how they are trying to help you.  Get specific.  Ask for guidance and directions on how to proceed.  Allow your individually tailored inner wisdom to lead you to your next steps.

Follow these steps and you just may be surprised at how fast your TO DO list gets done.

As always, I’d love to hear your insights, successes and questions!