This is a collaboration blog by Erika Del Sordo and Meredith Kimmel, ACC. This blog can also be found at www.meredithkimmel.com.
Do you ever feel like things aren’t working out for you no matter how much you try, or do you go with the flow?
Are you feeling so stressed out because you are trying to control so much, and things seem to be falling apart?
Do you ever just stop and wonder why some people seem to be thoroughly enjoying life and coasting along, and wonder why that isn’t you?
The answer is that these people know that life is like a river, and you must go with the Flow.
What is The Flow?
The flow is the path of your life that is set out for you. I use the visualization of moving along a river as my flow. I follow the current as it takes me along to my destination. We all know that life is full of difficulties and lessons. In my river analogy, I view the difficulties and lessons as taking the fork and in the river. Eventually, I will get back to the main river, but only after I learn my lesson and get my life experience.
The key is not to get stressed or frazzled when you take the fork in the river. The people that you see that are thoroughly enjoying life and coasting along, aren’t actually coasting along, they just know how to manage the forks in the river, and they go with the flow.
How Do You Go with The Flow?
Now, you may be saying, “Meredith, this all seems really simple, but life is actually more complicated than that.”
Here are some tips to help you go with the flow:
- Recognize that life does get complicated and that you only have limited control, so roll with the punches and allow the challenging time to pass and learn the lesson from it.
- Learn to manage stress and anxiety by journaling, meditating, doing yoga, or working out.
- Relax, and don’t take life too seriously. Without getting too dark, you only have a limited number on Planet Earth, so why not make the most and enjoy every single one of them.
- Enjoy the journey that is called life and recognize that you are equipped to manage the difficulties (or forks in the river).
- Set boundaries. If you see something in your life that is disrupting your flow, either get rid of it, or set boundaries that make you comfortable.
I’m now going to turn this blog over to Erika, so she can give you her thoughts on going with the flow.
Well, I do believe you nailed it, Meredith!
But one might be asking themself right now, “How do you go with the flow if you get devastating news and it stops you in your tracks?”
Well, that certainly makes things more challenging, but it’s the very reason you will want to implement Meredith’s tips from above.
When Life Zigs, You Zag!
It seldom helps when you’re already overwhelmed and new problems compound creating additional chaos spiraling everything out of control. (Whew, breathe!) This is where you acknowledge that you need to organize the clutter in your mind AND your space, whether that be your work space or your home space.
But life comes at you FAST! Sometimes you get a curveball. What if you’re not done cleaning the clutter? THAT’S WHEN YOU GO WITH THE FLOW!
Meredith said something above that really hit home for me. Some people just know what forks to take in the road. Everyone truly is going through something. Everyone. While you may feel that certain people may have it better off, that doesn’t mean that they’re not working through personal problems. They just knew what fork to take.
Guidelines to help The Flow
1. Prioritize the tasks in your day.
2. Breathe.
3. Stretch. (Maybe do a light exercise to get moving.)
4. Plan.
5. Breathe.
6. Complete the tasks of the day.
7. Feel overwhelmed. @#!* Wait, WHAT?!
8. Actually, let’s call this “#7 do-over”. Feel overwhelmed with a sense of accomplishment.
You just had a really productive day. Enjoy the moment when you realize, you took the right fork. 😊
