Have you been feeling pushed by your to-do lists? Or maybe you cannot find the inspiration to take your next step, no matter how hard you try.
Think of this as a call to take some time out.
How could you create time out of your usual routine?
Time out, away from your routine, allows you to let go of the past to open your future to more possibilities. How could you open that door? What do you need?
Because you’re ready to expand your life, even if you aren’t sure of how to do that.
Time Out to Replenish
Taking time out allows you to step outside of life’s daily details. You discover new rhythms, allowing different aspects of life to surface.
Consider how to create a life that resonates with your needs. Time out can take many different forms: an early morning walk in the quiet, followed by meditation time and a focus of inner exploration. Consider spending time writing, painting or another kind of creative expression. Even if that is not your usual metier (and especially if it isn’t), the very act of creating takes you beyond your known world.
The key? Create a physical and mental space to assess where you are and to play with possibilities for whatever is next.
Not Necessarily Paris
I knew I needed to explore my next steps when I went to Paris for a month. You can do this in your life without leaving home, or you could do what I did, move into a situation that stretched me every single day.
What comes after taking time out? With a blank page, you can create any script you like. Get out your favorite quill!
It’s important to stay open to what comes to you. Ask questions to explore and continue your research. Notice what has changed within you. Is there something that you want to do differently to align with those changes? Do you have a feeling of your next step?
Perhaps your vision needs refinement. How do you feel about the vision? Noticing that, take a breath, calm your body and see if there is more!
Last Thursday I went onto our website and saw… almost nothing. There was just a list of the content with no graphics, no color and no layout. It was like the void I experienced when taking time out: a (n) (almost) blank page.
What happened?
Of course, we repaired the break in the website. But I started asking questions. Is it time to take The Baca Institute to a new level? How is the purpose of the website changing? Who needs to be involved? What are the next steps?
Everything went into that exploratory mix!
What do YOU want to create next? Share your picture of what that could be. Take time out to explore, refine and identify your next steps. If you’ve taken time out recently, what has that brought to you? What are your discoveries?
Time Out Now for Reflection
Take a breath. Release it. Take another. Devote some dedicated time of concentration/meditation. It doesn’t need to be hours of quiet, perhaps only 15 minutes. Then allow the question to simmer within you through the weekend. Let responses bubble up into your awareness. Notice new ways of thinking, of images or ideas that arise spontaneously. Pay attention to your dreams. Let it happen. Be aware. See where it leads you next. Let yourself savor this process of receiving from yourself. Don’t judge whatever comes up, just receive it. Make notes.
You may want to share something from this process. Sharing is an important way to anchor an insight in your body. It leads you to deeper insight. It stimulates action. Feel free to use this arena to share whatever moves you.
