Do you ever just hit a block, or a wall, or a gargantuan pillar, or just something generally hard and tough that sort of knocks you out in an instant?
It seems to be a common thing lately. I’d have weeks of pure inspiration, motivation, determination, and every other ‘tion’ you can think of. But lately I feel so drained, so unmotivated, lacking in creativity, unable to process my thoughts clearly.
Its just your typical beginners economics cyclical curve – what comes up must come down. I always wonder why these cycles happen. What is it that makes you reach the top of the bell curve but then to drastically plummet to the bottom of the U curve.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately because it just seems to be a constant in my career life. So there’s a few things I feel are a cause that are worth thinking about if you’re in the same situation. But remember that we’re all different. What I do feel is important though is reflection. Without reflection you won’t be able to answer all your why’s or how comes. You’ll just be in constant negative mode – which ain’t pretty and could lead to a dangerous path.
So after a reflective week, these are some of what I feel cause my bummed out cycles when it comes to career and work life.
1) Work Overload
I’m a class A work-a-holic. If there is an AA meeting for work-a-holics please let me know because I seriously need it. I tend to take on too much work without thinking about my wellbeing. I’m a yes person and I just can’t seem to learn to say no when it comes to anything career related. This is partially (well mostly) because I’ve been trained to think every opportunity is a golden one and you never know where it will take you. So in essence, I have serious FOMO. I have a fear that one day I’ll wake up and I won’t have any options, that I won’t be able to land on my feet, and that I’ll have exhausted all of my paths to be left with nothing (ultimate fear). This is of course super dangerous because I seek out more work for myself and tell myself it will be fine, that I’m a big girl and can handle it, and that it will all pay off soon. But in reality, it takes away from other areas in life that are more important. Or else a development opportunity that has nothing to do with what’s happening right now.
See there I go again, another ‘opportunity’ that could be missed. #help
Does anyone else feel like that? Have you had a lucky reign where you just always seem to land on your feet but now have the ultimate fear that it may never happen again?
2) Rushing to the point of tripping
This is a serious one that I feel has led to the majority of mistakes I’ve made over the past couple of years. Rushing into things without properly digging deep and thinking if this is for me or not.
Its probably linked to my FOMO because I tend to convince myself that if I don’t take it now, it won’t be there tomorrow and I’ll have missed my chance. Now in saying this, there have been times where I did over think things a little, said no, and now I wonder if it all would be different. So you just can’t win really.
But this is a bit of a strange one because in other areas of my life I over think. A lot!! I’m also generally quite good with developing scenarios and their outcomes to see the best course of action but when it comes to my career its all just a blob really.
But how do we know that if we take this job today we’ll love it and never want to leave? How do you decide that you genuinely love every aspect? How can you dig deeper when it comes to your next move? Questions, questions, questions…
3) Social Media
Hello 21st century social media. Where the babes are plenty, the MUAs are in full force and a playing ground for wannabe entrepreneurs and ‘life coaches’.
Seriously though, why has social media taken over our lives so much? It just seems to be a constant reminder of how you still have so much to do to be able to live like that free spirited nomad who seems to be making 6 figures a month while travelling the world! Like how?
Social media definitely gets me down, no matter how many times I remind myself that its all fake and people just post the things they want you to see. But you still need to be in their position to post that stuff. You get me? All these inspirational quotes, ‘entrepreneurs’, and ‘life coaches’ telling you to work hard and eat dirt to get to where you want to be. Hey, I know I need to eat dirt and eating dirt isn’t the problem, its selling a life that seems to be built in an instant. If you’re going to tell people to quit their day job, forget about all the bills they need to pay and the mouths they need feed etcetera, then give them some support. Don’t just keep posting happy pictures saying ‘You could be here, but you need to work, work, work’. Its just NOT healthy.
I feel like we’ve gotten too attached to this whole ‘online community’ buzz that we’ve lost touch of what we need as humans. We need interaction, reassurance, guidance, support, help at times, love, care, and the list goes on. These online communities claim to offer support and help but in reality its not the type of community we need. Why aren’t they encouraging local communities where you actually go to a physical location, listen to others in your community, let real life people speak about their challenges, their fears, their success. Let real life people offer real life support.
Boy oh boy do I have a lot to say about social media. I think we need to rethink how we use it and why it is we go on social media. Just going on to try and find some inspiration by looking at pretty pictures and reading some motivational quotes isn’t really going to help. It might make you feel good then and there. Think of it like a sugar or caffeine spike. All good at the top but when its time to come down, its not exactly pleasant.
I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me. But there is seriously something wrong with the way social media makes us feel. I think we need to use it to show real life more often and not just fairytales.
I kind of went on a bit of a rant there, so apologies for that. Feels good though. So let me know your thoughts. Does any of this strike a chord with you or am I the only one sailing on this boat?
Key takeaway: I need to write things down more. Just to make sense of it.
Peace & Love,
C
The Pursuit of Inspiration 