“Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes but when you look back everything is different”  – C.S. Lewis

It’s that time again when we transition from summer into fall and then to all our year-end holidays and deadlines. You may be feeling a bit overwhelmed, so let’s talk about what you can do immediately to create a sense of ease and inner peace.

Power of Inner Connection Summit

First of all, I hope you have signed up for Julia Griffin’s Power of Inner Connection Summit that begins today.  My interview is on Friday, October 4, and I’ll be talking about how our beliefs can keep us stuck and limit our ability to experience true joy and abundance.  You can still access it HERE and enjoy all the interviews!

Is your To-Do list or upcoming deadlines creating butterflies?  Are you waking up in the middle of the night wondering if you missed something?  Are you worried how you are possibly going to get everything done?  Relax, I have a few tips here to help navigate your busy schedule with more joy, ease and simplicity.

Shift Fear to Excitement

Fear and excitement have the same energy.  They both can cause butterflies, increased heart rate and respiration from increased adrenalin.  I notice that whenever I’m headed out to an event, traveling or doing something new, I get butterflies.  In fact, I find myself feeling this way even when I’m doing something exciting and fun.  You may have too.

I had this experience the other night when I was riding downtown with my husband to a concert. When I shared how I was feeling with him, he said, “Maybe you are just excited.  Did you ever think of that?”  Of course that’s all it is.  I was just excited!  How many other times have I been tormented by fear that was really excitement?

Imagine all the other areas of your life where you are experiencing stress, overwhelm, and feeling just plain stuck.  Could it be that you just need a mindset shift?  Try asking yourself a new question:  “Why am I so excited to be (fill in the blank)?”  The first step here is noticing what’s going on and then shifting your energy and raising your vibration.

Get Grounded

Have you even felt like you have a tornado in your head?  Feeling overwhelmed and unorganized can lead to inaction and a sense of not knowing where to start.  Try this exercise in the morning, and anytime you find yourself feeling scattered.  Close your eyes and breathe.  You can do four sets of the 4-7-8 breath.  It goes like this:

  • Breathe in through your nose to a count of 4.
  • Hold your breath for a count of 7
  • Breathe out through your mouth (like you are blowing through a straw) to the count of 8

Do this 4 times and then bring your energy back into your body, down through the base of your spine and ground through your feet.  You should feel very grounded when you open your eyes.

Brain Dump Method

Now, take all those things that were flying around in your head and write them down.  Get them on paper and out of your head. Now sort through them and list them under three categories:

  • Important and Urgent – Write the things here that you must do and that need to be done right away.
  • Important and Not Urgent – Write the things here that are important, but you can schedule them later in your calendar.
  • Not Important – List everything else here.

 Take the Best and Leave the Rest

  • Look at your list and get rid of anything that you can delegate or simply eliminate.
  • Schedule the remaining items and stay focused until they are completed.
  • If you tend to get distracted with managing projects, this would be the time to consider hiring a coach or an assistant who can help you manage projects so you can focus on what you do best.

Once you have your goals, projects, and tasks identified and prioritized, you can add timelines and deadlines. Remember, clarity and focus will lead to confidence and completion.

If you are struggling with feeling stressed and overwhelmed, you will love the two guests that I have selected to interview this month.  Our first guest is Midlife Courage Coach, Sheree Clark. Sheree will share how we move from fearful to fearless as she shows us how to find the courage to live our lives.   Later in the month, we welcome the queen of ease and Master Certified Life Coach, Sarah Papp. Sarah will give us the formula to creating ease.

If you would like to go deeper on this topic, feel free to take our free course in the Smart Women’s Academy, Unlock Your Financial Power. This is where I share my six-step system to getting things done and creating massive change in your life.  You can use my system for anything from taking charge of your life to your finances and career.  And for those who do this, I even offer a follow up private session with me. Sign up today at the Smart Women’s Academy.

 

Katana Abbott, CFP®, is a Retirement Coach, founder of the Smart Women Companies, and the host Smart Women Talk Radio with over a million subscribers.  For over 30 years, Katana has shown women how to take charge of their life and finances and believes it’s never too early to plan for expected and unexpected events like retirement, encore careers, moving abroad, or preparing for long-term care.  She has written several books, created a financial literacy course, and is a popular speaker. Katana has been honored by NAWBO as one of Detroit’s Top 10 Business Women, receiving the Breakthrough Award. To download her new ebook, The Five Biggest Money Mistakes Women Make and How to Fix Them, visit www.katanaabbott.com