It's Been a Marathon
It's Been a Marathon
I don’t know about you but I’ve been feeling like I’ve been in a rut lately. When I’m in a rut I know that I do NOT do my most inspired work. I seem to get plugged into the to-dos to feel “accomplished” and delay the job that requires more inspiration that actually makes me feel “fulfilled”.
The more I chat with my fellow solopreneurs about this weird rut, I’ve learned that I’m not alone in this. This isn’t just some case of “writer's block” or a “slump” or “dry season” for me I have come to the conclusion that it’s been a marathon.
The past couple of years have been demanding and we’ve all been running at maximum output to adapt, jive, and keep up. We’ve been quick on our feet, learning at an accelerated pace, and burning the midnight oil.
We’ve been training, working out, conditioning, and doing all that it takes to run the race. But now that it feels like the race is over, we are just putting one foot in front of the other to keep moving forward, rather than celebrating that we did it! We’re just still grinding.
So when things slow down or ease up, we tend to think we’re not being “productive”. We’re slacking OR in a rut. But really things are calming down and we should too.
According to Runners’ World, some experts recommend one day of rest for every mile raced. That’s 26 days if you’ve run a full marathon. This allows for your ligaments, muscles, and soft tissues to restore themselves to reduce the risk of injury. We also need some time to recover from the whiplash of the past couple of years in our businesses. A friend of mine recently said to me, “Progress isn’t necessarily going forward, it’s going in the right direction,” after I confessed to him that I didn’t feel like I was making progress anymore.
I believe we all need a recovery period after some strenuous, but exciting few years. To allow ourselves to look up from the grindstone and reevaluate where we are instead of sticking to the same old task list. For some, this might mean a vacation, but for me, it’s time to go back to the ariel view of things. Zoom out and survey the possibilities, and the new landscape, and rethink the future. Letting ideas marinate and breathe for a minute before implementing an action plan.
Has this tidal wave of the past few years landed me on a shore I love or pushed me further out to sea? Maybe I just need to stop paddling and dive into what I love again to reduce the risk of burnout. Am I going in the right direction or are we just pushing forward?
Today I’m giving myself permission to start the recovery process:
I’m thanking God for the blessings of the past few years of high-velocity work for the money brought in, the skills I’ve gained, and the great work I’ve done with my stellar clients
I’m NOT making a to-do list and will not allow my inbox to dictate my day
I’m focusing on what will make me feel “fulfilled” not just “accomplished”
Do you need time to recover? Are you just pushing forward or actually moving in the right direction? What can you do today to get yourself out of the rut?
If you need it, I give you permission to recover from the marathon that's been life recently.
