I was on the phone talking to a friend as she was getting prepared to go out of town. Over the past couple of days I had heard her say, a few times, that she wouldn’t get everything she needed to done. I remember a time in my life when I felt that way 24/7. It had the adverse effect of keeping me up at nights as I my mind went through lists of everything that had to be accomplished the following day.
One day I realized that when I die I was still going to have unaccomplished items on my to-do list. I started to relax a bit at first and with time I am now far more relaxed, with the exception of panicking every tax season. Tells you where I’m headed at the moment!
What I have come to understand is that I am the one who gives meaning to what is important or a priority in my life. Furthermore, it is I who then puts pressure on myself to accomplish these tasks. When I apply such deep pressure as to cause mental or emotional harm to myself I am not being true to myself. Is it any wonder that I’m unhappy in those moments?
I also came to realize that as I was hurrying through the tasks that I was hurriedly trying to get done I never got the opportunity to be in the present moment and enjoy what I was doing. Living that way totally takes away from the quality of life that I deserve. The irony is that the entire time it was in my power to turn around, I just didn’t realize it.
I changed my thinking in order to change my life. We create the illusion that something is so important that we can actually cause most of our own stress and lack of enjoyment. In the end we can only ask ourselves if is it worth it. I know my answer; do you know yours?
March 3, 2008 at 4:34 pm
Wow! I never knew there is such pressure on what you have to do. In my opinion, I think it’s not good to allow myself such pressure. I just do my routine everyday and for the other things which are not routine and need to be done, I try to arrange them according to priority or need. Perhaps, it is because I am not working and have no work pressure, I have all the time to rearrange my schedule. I’m hoping that busy people can sometimes stop worrying and give themselves a break. And during these very hectic days, don’t forget to pause for a little while and smile.
March 4, 2008 at 7:44 am
Most pressure is self inflicted and will tend to happen with those who lean toward being perfectionists. Perfectionism can be nasty and the majority of the population tends to be that way in at least one area of their life. It’s no fun to be that hard on oneself.
I am very happy that you’re not that hard on yourself. Especially as a mother, it means you won’t be passing it on. Life is meant to be enjoyed. Keep smelling the roses.