I’ve got a crazy idea for you today.
Your key to being successful in your career is to spend time learning something else.
So you may be reading this and saying, “Ummmm..Nikol?? What are you talking about? I need all my time to go towards my career! There are SO many steps. If I’m spending my time on other things, how the heck will I have time for expanding my audience, working on my content, and creating the impact I desire?”
Fantastic question!
Today I want to outline specifically WHAT the “something else” is and why it will actually speed up your productivity and effectiveness as you are building your career. I’ll also share personally what I am learning that is making such an impact on my work right now.
Have you heard the old adage, “the parts make up the whole”? I want to apply this to you, and the fact that you are made up of many parts. I imagine you have heard yourself say, “this part of me wants this and the other wants that.” You may have felt crazy in the moment, but you were actually speaking from your truth. You have young, wise, sad, angry and happy parts, all holding a function and purpose in how you live your life. These elements have formed from past experiences in your life and the lives of your ancestors.
Now imagine there is a part of you that is SO excited, motivated and passionate about your career. They get jazzed when they see an empty stage, and deeply care about your audience. They want to help by sharing your wisdom and reach as many people as possible. To keep this motivated part nourished and alive, I imagine you have signed up for classes, hired coaches, and taken all the steps you need to.
Except why do you find yourself feeling wiped out? Why do you feel resistance about moving forward this year with your career?
I imagine it’s because you have other parts that are NOT being nourished. If all the energy is going towards learning what you need for your career, what is left for these other parts? What if the fatigue and resistance is really a cry for help, a signal that a part or parts of you are hungry and feel neglected?
We have all seen a friend, or perhaps have experienced personally, burnout. Burnout occurs when your nervous system, your emotional well being, and the actual function of your body has to shut down to finally get what it needs. The burnout occurs because one part became controlling and took over.
And I get it. It can be very easy to fall into the messaging that says we have to do “one thing”, and sacrifice everything else. But in these cases, relationships break apart, health falters, and at the end of the day, we weren’t able to achieve what we really wanted in our career because we are now exhausted.
So, the “something else” is what the other parts NEED. This way you are taking steps towards nourishing your wholeness. You are a beautiful complex being, not a robot.
A simple example is exercise. Let’s say you love to run, and are really consistent with running 2-3 times a week. You do this for your health, but neglect to brush your teeth. It doesn’t matter how much running you do, if you don’t brush your teeth, your OVERALL health will be impacted, and your teeth will fall out.
Let me give you my personal example.This year I am launching my book. As it’s my first one, I have had a HUGE learning curve, and have had to dive into student mode. I’m in final stages of editing, and the next step will be setting up the Amazon page with my publisher. So, I bought a book called Amazon Decoded by David Gaughran. But this is not the only book I have bought. I’m also reading Adoption Nation by Adam Pertman and What The Robin Knows by Jon Young. My husband and I are in the process of adoption and there is so much to learn! But what I find calms me the most and lifts my spirits, is staring out at my backyard and taking in the hopping birds as they feed, scratch, and flit.
Three different parts, all needing nourishment. And I find that when I feed them, I am present, able to focus, and give my full attention on each separate task. Learning about Amazon is helping me in creating a successful launch campaign and offering a vital step towards getting my book in as many hands as possible. But if I were to spend all my time on Amazon, I would quickly burn out. In fact, I would probably find myself NOT wanting to work on my book marketing and just stare wistfully out my window at the white-throated sparrow or check my phone obsessively to see if the adoption agency has called. ALL of these are important to me. I’m not dividing myself up and pitting my desire to create my family, bird watch, and have a successful book launch all against each other.
Fighting doesn’t work, and neither does silencing or ignoring. The way is always through. The way is always by INTEGRATING your parts.
So, how can you apply this?
* First begin by looking at where you are feeling stuck. Have you been trying to give ALL your attention to one part? What has felt at odds within you?
* Take a moment of compassion, and connect to your breath. Release the need for punishment and allow this to be a moment of love towards yourself.
* Now, what areas of your life are feeling neglected? What passions or relationships feel like they were thrown in the trash? If you are feeling lost here, a great place to start is with what activities or actions actually create PEACE in your body. This may be conscious food choices, meditation, yoga, exercise, or time in nature. It may be connecting with friends, conversations with loved ones, or intimate time with your partner. It may be playing with your children or pets and delighting in their joy.
* Now, in these areas, ask yourself, “how can I nourish these areas? What would be helpful to learn?”
* This next week, make time for nourishment. Set a timer if you need around your career tasks, and spend an hour less there. Give that time to feeding what has felt neglected.
You are whole, made up of glorious parts, each a shining color of your personal vibrant prism.
Take this next week to LISTEN to what your other parts need, and then watch your energy return. Feel yourself grounded again in your power.