The world is a messy place.
Some days we feel the need to crumble in despair, believing that the problem is too big to do anything about it.
It’s true; life is messy, thoughts are messy, and emotions are messy, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Messy is exciting ~Messy is courageous ~Messy is creative
Messy is what makes us unique in an ever-changing and evolving world.
I used to feel so overwhelmed by what was going on in my head that I didn't know where to start, where to find the first thread of perspective? I can't even untangle a knotted necklace, so how was I supposed to cope with untangling my thoughts and fears?
It was about five years ago when I first identified my tangled thoughts as feeling like a scribble drawing. You know, the sort done by a two-year-old.
I was chatting with my sister and noticed that my mind went straight to ‘scribble mode when I was stressed.
Having this realisation was really helpful. It gave me a way to focus on the feeling creating a great place to start figuring out what to do about it.
Turns out I wanted to keep those lines, unravel them and turn them into art.
Being consumed by overwhelm, and let’s face it, it is all-consuming, will hide all your logical thoughts and insightful thinking abilities and leave you with no chance of seeing any of the fun elements of life.
I will talk at a later date about why fun is so important and why playful people achieve higher levels of success.
I had to find a way to see through the chaos, the scribble, untangle the mess and find the beautiful shapes hidden within. I wanted to trust there was a lot of value there.
How do you do that when you don’t know where to start?
Well, don’t try this alone; please trust me on this one.
I said that messy is exciting, courageous and creative; overwhelm, on the other hand, is not.
Overwhelm is debilitating, frightening and exhausting. Overwhelm paralyses all your big picture thinking abilities and focuses only on the problems. Overwhelm turns every molehill into Mount Everest.
Overwhelm turns every molehill into Mount Everest.
It was suggested that I keep a journal. A nice idea but not a great jumping-off point as my mind was too busy, too confused to settle on where to start.
At its worst, I couldn’t even focus enough to read a book, so how could I write my own. It’s hard to write about your thoughts and emotions when they are such a tumbling mess.
I could see the power of writing though, so I just adjusted it to bullet points—random words.
I look back to some of my early ones, and I just have simple words here and there.
Scared
Confused
Overwhelmed
Messy
Alone
Lost
Do any of these feel like you?
They felt like me and that needed to change!
I am scared ~ I am confused ~ I am lost.
It hit me like a hammer...
I needed a new "I AM" statement
The words “I am” are potent words; be careful what you hitch them to. The thing you’re claiming has a way of reaching back and claiming you.
~A.L. Kitselman. Scientist, psychologist and pioneer in Cognitive Therapy.
So that’s what I did. I created my “I am” statement, and I use it everyday day, yes EVERY FREAKING DAY, come rain or shine.
I know this is simplifying it; I didn’t do this alone; I have a wonderful coach; in fact, I have three wonderful coaches.
