Mindful Monday: The Art of Pausing
‘Want to be happier and productive? Take a break.’
I read this last week somewhere and it totally resonated with me.
It’s what I’ve been doing.
For the last six months I’ve unplugged from social media and taken more time to go inward, to be and to reassess.
Asking myself questions like…
What brings me joy?
Do I really want to do this, or do I think I ‘should’ do this?
Am I trusting and allowing or am I forcing?
While some people might say ‘That’s not good for your business! What will happen?!’ I thought to myself ‘Yes I can, and it’s exactly what I need to do.’ My ‘yes’ came from a very deep place of knowing.
Taking time to be unplugged was exactly what my soul wanted, and my business needed.
I’ve loved it, and now after taking a break I’m ready to plug in again because I want to, not because I should.
It has been very enlightening.
I have more clarity and feel more inspired.
It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of things both personally and professionally. This belief ‘I gotta make things happen, stay busy, and if I pause and rest, I’ll miss out.’ Some serious FOMO!
But is this true?
Where is this belief coming from? Our Self with a capital ‘S’ or the ego?
Last week I talked about how we come into the world present and relaxed. There is no concept of striving or forcing. Then through conditioning from our parents and society we adopt beliefs that we have to make things happen or strive to get ahead. We might compare and feel a need to succeed in order to be enough.
This messaging runs deep in our psyche and in the collective consciousness.
When we are controlled by this conditioning we are no longer in flow and quite often do things out of obligation rather than inspiration.
As a result, we can find ourselves feeling depleted, drained, or lacking a sense of fulfillment.
Over the years so many people have shared with me they don’t really know why they do what they do. They know it’s not bringing them fulfilment or supporting their well-being, but they feel like they don’t have a choice, that it’s just the way it is.
Is it true we don’t have a choice?
We may not have control over many things in our outer world. We can, however, choose to stop and ask ourselves…
How do I feel when I do this?
Is this bringing me joy?
What really matters to me?
Am I doing this out of love or out of fear?
When we start noticing, feeling, being curious, inquiring, questioning, tuning into what is aligned with our soul, and ultimately acting on it, we are co-creating with the Universe.
This is the art of pausing.
In my workshops I talk to people about the importance of pausing and taking time for ourselves. I talk about the importance of going inward, trusting, and allowing things to unfold as they will.
When we take time to ‘be’ our doing comes from our place of ‘being’.
Meaning…
We are coming from a place of presence. We are tuned in. We are in flow. We are allowing rather than forcing and there is a sense of trust in ourselves and in the moment. We are aligning with our souls’ purpose rather then being controlled by our ego.
And if we have one of those days where we aren’t in the flow or trusting, that’s natural. In those moments when we don’t feel in flow we can notice it, pause, and reassess.
For these past several months I explored these principles on a deeper level, and it feels really good.
So, in a world where we have bought into the belief that we need to stay busy, I believe there is room to question.
Want to be more productive? Pause. Unplug. Take a Break. In fact, take lots of breaks. Get to know yourself. Feel. Breathe.
Whether the breaks are 30 seconds, 30 minutes or a weekend is irrelevant.
What matters is our intention - to pause, to be and to reconnect to the incredible being that we are and to why we are here.
When our mind and body are more relaxed, we operate differently. We see ourselves and the world from a different lens.
I feel a new sense of inspiration. I’m seeing my life, myself, and my work through a different lens, and when things begin to feel forced (which they inevitably will at some point!) I will circle back to pausing, breathing and being.
I hope you’ll give it a try!
Diane