Have you ever felt like you’re on the hamster wheel of life? You’re trying to make it go faster and faster, watching the world go by around you (outside the glass cage)…
- You’re not sure if anyone else knows about the wheel or is on it.
- You don’t know if anyone knows you’re on the wheel, much less if they will catch you when you fall off.
You’re exhausted, deflated, frustrated.
You’re overwhelmed.
That’s me of late, having an incredibly full plate…the guy who wrote the book, Overwhelming Pursuit: Stop Chasing Your Life and Live. In my blog of October 16th, I state that I’m not overwhelmed because I:
- Know my “why”
- Have a commitment to peace over pace
- Am prayerful
Holding to the above as still true, the hours I’ve been working can’t be sustained. So the question becomes…what to do about it.
A couple weeks ago, I had a breakthrough. It occurred to me that unless I was willing to change, that things weren’t going to change. We’ve all heard “the definition of insanity”….doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. That’s what I was practicing and didn’t even realize it. I needed to be the change. It’s me who needed to change.
In thinking about it, followed by living it over the last several weeks, I believe that change requires three things:
- Recognizing that there’s an issue – so often, we can’t see our own stuff. We’re blinded by our reality, needing someone else to identify what’s going on. For me, it was a light bulb going off, over a couple days, given several discussions with teammates. It was also the realization that I was the only one who could fix it. I needed to change.
- Making the right decision – once recognizing the problem, I had to determine the right course of action. For me, that was reducing my meeting schedule and relying more on my incredibly talented team, reminding them of the ownership they already had. For you it is probably something totally different. You need to figure it out (with others), followed by making the decision.
- Being committed to the change – as creatures of habit, we typically don’t like change. We don’t like it when it’s done to us. And we don’t like making change ourselves. Being committed to change can be very difficult, but typically is incredibly gratifying.
I’m just a couple weeks in…so I’ll keep you posted. Gratified to date, I hope that it’s sustained, by God’s grace.
BTW, praying through all of it is a big plus. From past blogs, “God loves you more than you’ll ever know, no matter what you’ve ever done”. He’s there for you. Rely on Him, God our Father, Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit who dwells within each of us.
As always, feel free to contact me at Mark@MarkJosephMinistries.com with questions, comments, or challenges.
God Bless you on your Path to Peace, Joy, and Fulfillment!!!
Mark Joseph