Last week I fell into an old pattern of taking on more than I can handle.
I know what I need in order to be the best version of myself for me and for the people in my life, but I ignored that and said yes to a project without evaluating how much of my time and energy would be invested into it.
A couple days into saying yes I took a step back and realized that I was not honoring my needs and was no longer showing up in life as the person I strive to be. I found myself trying to pour from an empty cup.
Instead of being upset that I fell back into this pattern, I am celebrating it! Celebrating that I no longer live in the space of putting other people's wants and needs ahead of my own. Celebrating that I have the awareness to know exactly when I am not honoring my needs. Celebrating that I can communicate clear boundaries when I notice my needs are not being met. Years ago this situation would not have been detected as a problem. In fact, I probably would have been proud of my business. Even if that meant feeling overwhelmed or leading to burnout. But I have a new comfort zone- a comfort zone where feeling good is a priority and a standard for how I live my life. I can now easily catch when I am not honoring my needs. It has taken a lot of inner work to detach my worth from how much I “do” or produce. This is mostly from social conditioning and if I were to guess you have probably felt the pressure to “do more” or produce more... even if that meant not honoring your needs first.
⠀
If you find yourself in a space of overwhelm or burnout some questions you can ask are,
✨How did I get here? What made me say yes to this?
✨How will I notice this pattern in the future?
✨How does my body/mind feel in overwhelm or burnout?
⠀
What to do if you are in this space-
✨Accept that you are here
✨Forgive yourself or others if necessary
✨Communicate your needs or boundaries clearly and effectively- don’t skip this part!
⠀
What not to do-
✨Beat yourself up over it
✨Regret decisions that have already been made