These last few days have been filled with frustration, mental exhaustion, and lack of energy. Coming off of an adventurous weekend trip, I felt motivated and inspired from my visit to the Walker Art Center. Those creative juices were depleted arriving back at home. The extra day of the weekend and sun shining bright made me feel like I was on summer break. Something I have been envious of Kris partaking in for the last few weeks. Coming back to the routine of work has never been more difficult.
I was set on doing a short blog post and not my typical Friday text. But after talking through this idea, a better suggestion was offered. To write about what I’m going through in a post. We all go through these highs and lows. Whether it be through daily stresses, work, relationships, or creative inspiration. It’s easy to sulk in all of our emotions, beat ourselves up, and feel defeated. The real solutions are figuring out
How do we push ourselves when we’ve run out of steam?
How do we retain our focus when our mind needs a break?
The most important thing is to give ourselves time to process through our thoughts and emotions. This can take anywhere from an hour or a few days. We each work through things differently and need to give ourselves the time to do so. We cannot ignore this. Whether we find time to journal, meditate, take a walk, or any other outlet that clears our mind, we need to do what works best for us. We need to cherish this time to step away from everything. This is when we re-energize and reconnect with ourselves. We remember what gives life to our soul and how grateful we are to be alive. Discovering this quality within ourselves, again, brings us back to life.
When our mind is cleared of all distractions, then we are able to tap into what drives our spirit. We can focus on why we started down this path. We can focus on what made us passionate. These ideas are always within us, but sometimes we forget how we started. Once we revisit these feelings we light the spark inside of us again.
We have to keep this momentum going to not get caught in a lull. As much as we want to quit and take a break, trudging through is the key. I struggle with this because I tend to remove myself from a situation to regroup. But I am reminded to channel this energy into my work. These feelings will always come and go. Finding a balance between doing a job that we excel in but do not enjoy and keeping our sanity is key.
We can push ourselves only so far until we reach our breaking point. We can choose to let it defeat us or fight it.