As Elsa belted out in Frozen, “Let it go!”.
Some of you may have noticed that I didn’t post last week. I got to Thursday and realized I hadn’t written or prepared anything, and I had little to no time to do so before my (self-imposed) publishing deadline.
My perfectionist stickler haunted me for an entire day telling me that I had failed, that my blog was now going to lose any momentum it had gained and that I would disappoint my readers.
Talk about anxiety!
After stressing out trying to figure out how to fit in, I made the decision to let it go and focus on what I could get done and more importantly what was most important.
I shifted the dialogue from, “I failed”, to “I have permission to let it go. I’m doing the right thing”.
What’s more, this is a real-life example that sometimes, we can’t get it all done. Part of finding balance is learning when to back off when to let go.
Here are 4 lessons I learned from this experience:
Be aware. It seems like a simple thing but just being conscious of the feelings that come up when you start to feel anxious or overwhelmed is a huge step toward shifting your entire experience.
Take a deep breath. Never take breathing for granted. Anxiety triggers us to hold our breath. Taking deep breaths in and deep breaths out will slow down your entire nervous system and reduce the level of stress.
Be kind to yourself. Slay your saboteur. When your saboteur comes in, shift the dialogue from negative to positive. This takes practice. Don’t give up.
Let it go. Let it go and feel the joy and freedom of lifting that weight off your shoulders.
What strategies do you use to let things go? I’d love to know. Leave a comment below.
Of course, if you enjoyed this post, I’d love it if you share it with your world.
Photo by Katika Bele on Unsplash