A new year and a new decade are a time to reflect on what has changed. One thing I am becoming more aware of is that we seem to be in a constant state of busyness and even overwhelm. The demands accelerate year on year, and the ‘fear’ of not meeting those demands causes neurochemical storms, stress and dis-ease.
We need to find practical ways to change how we do things so that we can operate in this speeded up world and not get caught up in the ‘fear’, not get caught out by our neurochemistry which is designed to favour survival (dealing with the ‘fear’) over rational thought.
So, this is the first of a series of tips on how to remove the ‘fear’ response from our daily lives and allow us to replace the stress chemicals with something more benign.
First tip: Write it down.
Get at least some of the thinking whirling around in your head out and onto paper where it can be parked until you need it. A truly parked thought is stationary, and ‘out of mind’, and so cannot generate ‘fear’ and stress chemicals.
This week, experiment with parking stuff that is cluttering your head and distracting you. You will probably notice that you can then focus more easily on your current task.
What else do you notice when you park stuff so it’s not active in your thoughts?
My best wishes, Paul
