I’ve always been an over-achiever. That’s how I managed to work my way up to run a national company from an entry level position. It was no easy feat and certainly not easy as a single mother with two young children. But I persevered. Never took no for an answer and always found ways to overcome any obstacles. I was a fighter who took control my career, and it worked.
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That is, I thought it worked. I believed it was the best way to be successful and in fact, I’ve coached hundreds of women using this model for success.
But then everything changed overnight. Everything changed last July when a spider bit my foot and subsequently gave me Lyme disease. Little did I know then that my traditional approach of taking control and tackling any obstacles in my way would no longer work for me. In fact, I discovered that the only way to take control of my situation and my health was to let go.
That’s a novel idea! Taking control by letting go.
Of course it took me a while to realize this. My revelation didn’t happen overnight. I stayed in my comfort zone and tried all my well-worn approaches to solving the new problem that I was sick. I took the antibiotics but refused to accept the scope of my illness. I attempted to work and kept my travel schedule to deliver keynotes. I denied reality and continued to work out, run, and spin until I hit a wall, a very formidable wall and wake-up call that this approach wasn’t working. And it wasn’t until I let go and accepted my new reality that I started to heal. It was then that I learned a new approach that would help me going forward; practicing mindfulness and starting each day with meditation, journaling, the expression of gratitude each evening, and celebrating every accomplishment.
Adopting these practices helped me take control in a new way, by letting go. These practices will not only reduce your stress, but will help you move beyond the distraction of your negative limiting beliefs and outlook to achieve greater success.
Mindfulness and meditation
Google, Monsanto, Marie Claire, National Grid, have discovered many positive results from mindfulness training as outlined in this article from Wharton. Mindfulness has helped employees make better decisions and let go of their negative judgments about themselves and others. Companies such as General Mills and Target have found that employees that practice mindfulness have more compassion for others, are more productive. The many benefits of mindfulness for employees and business are well documented.
Journaling
There are some surprising benefits to journaling that go beyond mindfulness. These include improving your communication and writing skills along with boosting self-confidence and memory. Julia Cameron recommends “morning pages” to spark your creativity. For me, journaling has been a path to healing each morning. Both meditation and journaling provide a refreshing way for me to start my day; to renew my energy, optimism, focus.
Read the full article on Forbes.com.
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