[box type=\”shadow\”]\”Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.\”
– Will Rogers [/box]
The thing I love about Cape Town is the unceasing variety that it manages to dish up in terms of weather.
We pretty much get it all. Chilly, gale force winds in spring, balmy autumn days, crackling hot summers and cold fronts with drenching rain in winter.
Not infrequently – a surprise
Not infrequently, though, our weather breaks this mould and surprises us. Like today. I\’m sitting outside to write this – an unlikely event in winter – gazing out on the millpond that is False Bay, framed by verdant green mountains and capped by azure blue skies completely devoid of cloud.
As I take in the peacefulness and beauty of the view – and breathe in deeply as I come to terms with how busy I have been over the past weeks and months – I appreciate how important it is to take time out to reflect.
Too few hours in a day
One of the things that always strikes me when I talk with other people is how frantically busy we all seem to be. Many people talk about how their workloads have increased, others talk about how time seems to be speeding up – but the common refrain is that there are far too few hours in a day to get done all we feel needs to be done.
For example, it\’s a sad but understandable fact that 95% of the people who unsubscribe to Insights claim they do so because they are simply \’overwhelmed\’ with too many emails or information.
Of course, we humans have only ourselves to blame.
Technology – saviour or curse?
Increasingly rapid advances in technology were hailed in the seventies as the solution to our work woes. Lifestyles would become ever more comfortable and enjoyable as new devices automated repetitive work and relieved us of our burdens, freeing us up to do the things we really wanted to do.
So what happened?
While new technology has indeed helped us to complete tasks that would previously have taken hours or days in minutes, it has also stripped us of our private time.
In my recent book, I talk about the evolution of an \’always on\’ society where it has become almost socially unacceptable not to be available 24/7, whether that be for work or private purposes. My daughter, who is flying to the UK via Dubai tonight told my wife: \”Don\’t worry Mum, I\’ll SMS you the minute that we land in Dubai.\” That\’ll be 3am in the morning for us, I thought, diplomatically choosing not to complain!
The result of the \’always on\’ society that we have created is that most of us have lost the ability to pause and reflect deeply on our lives and the direction we want them to head in. We\’re simply too busy getting stuff done!
Critical importance
And yet, the act of pausing, observing and reflecting is of critical importance in getting to know ourselves. If you read \’Love and Abundance\’ last week, you\’ll appreciate that knowing yourself is the first step towards accepting yourself and ultimately being able to love yourself for what you are – which is when the abundance of this magical universe starts to make itself obvious.
If you\’ve reached this point in my message then you have just embarked on a brief course of pausing and reflecting. Do you feel better for having done that?
If so why not take it further.
Your conscious mind needs variety in order to be at its most effective. Focusing on the same issues for too long brings about fatigue and frustration. Issues that you feel need to be ‘resolved’ and make you feel stressed are best handled by your subconscious mind that works ‘behind the scenes’ to find solutions to meet your needs, while your conscious mind ‘enjoys a breath of fresh air’.
Time out to reflect and correct
So, anytime you\’re feeling stressed with a situation, overwhelmed by everything you feel \’needs to get done\’ or simply \’stale\’ and in need of some reinvigoration, take a little time out, observe the tranquility of the natural beauty around you, reflect on the outcome you truly want, question whether what you are doing will get you there, resolve to make some changes – and take action.
In many respects this is exactly what life coaching is about.
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I know many of us have taken up life coaching because we believe it is a noble cause or we believe we want to work with people or we believe it can earn us a good living. I had a discussion with a friend of mine in the USA Dr. Rubino who is also a life coach. We came to the conclusion to be a successful life coach you have to have the heart and soul for your fellow man/woman. The word Life coach tells me that we exchange views and give advice which go to the heart and soul of those we advise. Meaning we intervene with the character and soul of those we want to assist. This place us in a very powerful position but also a very responsible one. On our advice and guidance individuals sometimes take decisions which influence their entire lives. This entails that we have the power to change but that power I believe is not always understood very well. We can assist or we can derail an individual and if your heart and soul is not with you and the awareness that you hold that power one can become irresponsible. The knowledge we have is not for us to inflate ourselves but for those who receive inspiration from our knowledge to carry on and or rectify their ways. I believe a life coach is like a tuned music instrument. Once tuned correctly it brings fought the most beautiful and harmoni0us sound which relaxes and bring about balance. However when out of tune or the wrong cords are strokes the sound is horrible and the consequences disastrous. Life coaches are life’s’ instruments to those who listen to us.
Tune your life to those who need you
Good luck
“A little reflection will show us that every belief, even the simplest and most fundamental, goes beyond experience when regarded as a guide to our actions.”
William Kingdon Clifford
“And time for reflection with colleagues is for me a lifesaver; it is not just a nice thing to do if you have the time. It is the only way you can survive.”
Margaret J. Wheatley