As I’ve gotten busier with my real estate career, blog, and editing side hustles, I’ve started feeling more overwhelmed. There are days where I wake up and I am pulled in every single direction with no end in sight.
Multiple income streams sound great until you have to actually work for them (that’s why I’m shifting my focus to passive income streams for the foreseeable future!)
I read a phenomenal article in the New York Times the other day- that mediocre feeling we’re all experiencing these days is called languishing.
“It wasn’t burnout — we still had energy. It wasn’t depression — we didn’t feel hopeless. We just felt somewhat joyless and aimless. It turns out there’s a name for that: languishing.
Languishing is a sense of stagnation and emptiness. It feels as if you’re muddling through your days, looking at your life through a foggy windshield. And it might be the dominant emotion of 2021.”
Between balancing work, my relationship, friendships, and the fatigue of this pandemic, I’m left with very little time to myself. I’m sure you’ve felt the same at some point this past year!
So how can we tackle and start thriving instead?
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Find A Way To Practice “Forest Bathing”
Have you heard of forest bathing? It is a Japanese practice that allows you to reconnect with nature. The average American spends 93% of their time indoors and this disconnect can lead to anxiety and stress.
Start small- sit on your balcony for 15 minutes every day, walk on the grass barefoot, then eventually find a hike!
My version of forest bathing starts with waking up without an alarm. Despite what you might think, I usually end up waking within 30 minutes of when I would have planned to. Getting rid of an alarm in my daily routine allows me to wake up more peacefully and when my body is ready.
I then immediately take my dog for a walk and keep my phone turned off since the night before. This has done wonders for my stress levels as well. I have time with my own thoughts and in nature before I have to answer calls and texts.
Schedule “Free Time” Every Day
I start feeling more overwhelmed when I don’t have a choice in what I’m doing. If I give myself more flexibility in my schedule, I find that I enjoy working more. If I feel rushed and pressured to get something done every hour of the day then I start feeling crabby and all of my creativity drains out of me.
By incorporating time to lounge and be “unproductive” I end up giving myself the freedom to think.
Do Something Fun Every Week
Scheduling a fun date night or social outing with my friends every week has given me more to look forward to! Sometimes I want to just curl up and stay in, but I always come back happy that I took the plunge and didn’t flake.
Give Yourself Grace To Say “No”
The more things you say no to, the more time you have for opportunities you actually enjoy! This is such an important lesson but it’s definitely a hard one to implement. Saying no to one thing means you can say yes to another. So if you say yes to something you don’t want to do, you’re essentially denying yourself the opportunity to do something that would benefit you. Learning to say no is one of my biggest goals for 2021.
Let Go Of False Urgency
Take your time and stop setting ridiculous expectations of yourself! Most things don’t need to be done urgently so prioritize the right tasks. You don’t need to accomplish your whole “to-do-list” every single day. Some of those tasks can be pushed back. Learn to prioritize your time property.
Take A Vacation
We could all use a little change of pace and sight-seeing. Working from home with no big vacations to look forward to in 2020 wore me out. I took a few days off last weekend and drove up to Rosemary/Panama city beach and tried to shut my brain off as much as possible!
I noticed I came back more energized and ready to dive back in (with more trips scheduled soon!)
Related: 7 Affordable Florida Getaways
The best way to deal with “languishing” is to find ways to start flourishing again. Explore new hobbies and start a passion project!
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