A classic post....A
few nights ago when I was meditating, I asked for some insight. What I
heard was very relevant and something I thought I'd share, because I'm
certain I'm not alone.
"You've
gotten yourself too far down into the weeds." That's what I heard. And
it sounded kind of like my father saying it. Regardless of where it came
from, though, I knew what it meant. I'm putting too much thought and
energy into things that have no bearing on my purpose and goals in life.
I'm wasting my water and sunlight on things that won't grow and I don't
want to grow.
The more I thought of it, the more I saw all the ways I do this. I:
- Engage in issues with people who have no bearing on my life.
- Ruminate over things I don't do as well I've done in the past.
- Think about things I wish I could have done better.
- Think about things I wish I could have said, but didn't.
- Linger over things that have already been dealt with.
- Worry about things that haven't happened yet.
- Think about things rather than just do them.
- Fear doing things that haven't been done yet.
None
of that stuff is moving me toward my goals. Meanwhile, seemingly
unrelated things do, in my opinion. Like a retail therapy trip I took
earlier in the week. It distracted me from energy-sucking thoughts and
refueled my energy. In fact, I've done a number of things in the past
week that have helped me push my reset button.
I
think I've probably been in the weeds for a long time. I mean, the
goals and the move toward them is ever-present, if not always
successful. But they're wrapped in a fog of insignificance and
distraction, which, frankly has just added stress to the situation.
While distraction can lighten the load, especially if you're overly
focused, some types of distraction just add weight to your backpack that
is not needed.
The
first step toward recovery is recognizing there's a problem. While I
knew I wasn't as focused as I could be, I never saw it this way before.
If you imagine a cross section of earth, you don't want to be stuck in
the thatch of weeds. You want to be up above them where you can navigate
the big picture. But then you don't want to be so high that integral
parts of the picture are out of sight.
Now
that I recognize this, I need to retrain myself to slough what doesn't
matter and not let it distract me. It's a habit that needs to be broken.
I think it's important to balance things, so nothing of value gets
neglected along the way. When you consider that most of our goals touch
many areas of our life, we have to pay attention to the whole tamale.
So
we have to think about where we want to be. What does life look like
with your goal met? What does it look like spiritually? How does it
impact your health and relationships? If an activity or relationship or
way of thinking doesn't align with that vision, part of reaching your
goal will have to be letting that go.
And
while you're getting yourself out of the weeds and moving toward your
goal, surround yourself with people who not only support your path, but
can handle your success. I learned a long time ago that there are people
who, for whatever reason, hold a smaller vision for you and your world
than you have for yourself. That is their issue. Don't make it yours.
Anything you try to pull out of the weeds with you will just weigh you
down.
