Can I Really Climb a Mountain by Changing One Thing?

It sounds clichéd doesn’t it? Just “Change one thing”?

 

In the last few weeks I have found myself feeling really unsettled. I’m not sure why….maybe it’s that old Mercury retrograde schizzle lots of people have been talking about! Whatever it is, I’ve found myself faced with lots of interesting decisions to make.

 

When life is like this it can feel really overwhelming. What is making me feel like this? Why am I feeling all over the place? Has something changed? Have I changed?! I

 

f you’re feeling like this, just stop giving yourself a hard time, right?! It’s a highly changeable time of year. The children are about to finish, if they haven’t already, for an epic 6-week holiday. You might be going away or even trying to juggle your working life with them being off school for the whole of August. If you are self-employed, the thought of taking time off to manage school holidays can mean a hit on your income just when you’re going to need it for those days out or a family holiday perhaps. It seems the routines of the entire country change in August, even if we don’t all have kids!

 

So STOP! What one thing could you do that could alleviate the strain? Take some time out, grab a pen and paper and write down all that’s spinning around your mind. What’s worrying you? What do you want that situation to look like when it’s resolved?

 

Now look again. What can you do to get you closer to that ideal? Is there one thing you can change that can make a difference? Can you make a phone call to make something happen? Could you write an email to follow up with something you are STILL waiting for? Can you make sure you see that parent on the school run before the kids break up just to check if she really can have your kids for a day next week so you can get some work done?

 

Sometimes these things are tricky. Do you need to have a difficult conversation with someone? Is it time to clear the air with another? Is there something we need to stop doing, or start doing, or maybe even do more or less of?

 

It might be down to simpler things….a call to the hairdresser to give yourself  a bit of ‘you time’ before the chaos of summer hols takes hold. How do you fancy turning off the TV tonight and having a long soak in the bath because you’re feeling a bit strung out and never get time to switch off? Could you make an extra portion of tea, so you have a wholesome and home-cooked lunch to take to work tomorrow rather than feasting on a supermarket beige meal deal that makes you feel like crap half way through the afternoon? Could you fill a jug full of fresh lemon slices and water tonight and make sure you drink it all during the day tomorrow? Any chance you could ask your husband to walk the dog with you before he goes to work so you can have some time together before the day begins? Could you wash your hair later so you can have an extra 15 minutes in bed tomorrow? 'Treat' yourself to an online shop so you don;' need to take the children to the supermarket on the 1st day of their school holidays! No treat for anyone!!

 

We all have massive things that can overwhelm us at times, but more often it’s the little things that compound into the hugest sense of paralysis and we get stuck in the Groundhog Day-style eddy. Yes, some things really are too massive a mountain to climb in one go. There genuinely are other things that even the tiniest of first steps can make a difference. Once those first few baby steps are taken, don’t underestimate the power that can have to rocket-fuel your life to great new things!