Funny Thing About Paychecks: They Generally Only Come When You’ve Completed Something

But it’s difficult to get going when you’re mentally constipated.

This is how I finally described my dreaded lurgy.

Last week was a week where I was ON THE MOVE – in EVERY sense of that phrase. HA! I had things to do, people to see, lots going on and very little time within which to do every thing! I WAS STOKED. My ideas were finally coming together and making sense.

After a successful radio show, visits with clients, and work booked for June, July AND August, I returned to Tobago in high spirits!

“I should tackle the yard” I thought. “Don’t let all this wonderful energy go to waste!” And so I set about going to buy all that I needed to spruce things up: paint, sandpaper, paintbrush, filler, and wire. [Wire for our recently acquired shelter/formerly beach dog – Pocket who is a night time Houdini and has been escaping through gaps in the fence!] This was on Thursday.

On Friday I did what I set out to do – I “wired” the gaps in the fence, and cleaned up the yard! [No painting yet.]

Saturday passed by…Sunday….Monday.

Had an epiphany about my web site – I needed to change it and based on some feedback about someone else’s site in my Makeness Insiders – Mark-making Group, I got some great tips and set in motion to revamp. Check – site was completed. BUT all the things I had planned to do on Monday got pushed over to Tuesday.

Tuesday. Made more changes to my site.

Wednesday. Started to slow down…felt like I had too much going on in my head. Didn’t actual get anything done. I HAVE WORK TO DO!

Today. Got up and went for a walk. Had a shower. Thought to myself “Great start! You’re going to get lots done today…” Nothing. Shoved aside any real work to be done and read a few pages in the first fiction book I’ve read in ages – “The Ocean at The End of The Lane” by Neil Gaiman. Had lunch and then sat at computer when these two words surfaced:

BRAIN DUMP

And then I realized it. I needed to empty my brain. Even though I journal daily, I needed to get all the ideas and ideas about those ideas on a blank sheet of paper so that I could SEE what was going on but also to FREE up my head to FOCUS where I need to focus – the projects that I recently took on.

Victoria Carlson, a writer, so accurately described how I was feeling in a post from October 2011

So, I’m sitting here, reading Neil Paul and Sir James Emmerling and other blog posts, trying to stay in the OS loop, while at the same time, seeking inspiration, and well, a pleasant distraction, because really, I should be writing my own shit, but I feel like a well that’s run dry, even though I have a gazillion thoughts flowing through my brain, I just can’t seem to focus, I’m constantly jotting down fragments and random adjectives and ideas, none of which have come to fruition…

Here’s why I realize my brain needs to dump every couple of days: Our minds are constantly working. So often, we find ourselves caught in emotionally created versions of reality. Then we conjure up our own roadblocks. Only when we occasionally empty our brain can we then SEE the truth –  the facts that allow us to think clearly and with clarity and more often than not, we’ll discover we don’t have a procrastination problem, we are NOT confused…we just need to get the shit out of our brain and refocus.

I did a little research [hey I am a nerd AND anal] and came across this Coach Meshell Zwicker who is better at articulating my recent experience.

Experience shows, that when you start to feel anxious and overwhelmed, it’s partly due to trying to use your brain for storage! The brain is meant for processing, NOT for storage. When it’s busy trying to track and recall and organize all the things you need to do, it’s significantly disabled and can’t process for you as you need it to.

Awwww so that’s what it is! 🙂 I thought something was wrong with me…whew! Thanks Meshell and thanks for the following tips:

On a fresh page in your journal, number from 1 to 50 (minimum). Block out an hour in your schedule. Sit somewhere enchanting, quiet, soothing, distraction-free and begin to dump everything you have to do, and want to do, from your brain.

It might look like this;

1. Make bed
2. Revise and recommit to Blog schedule
3. Help Sonja find a personal chef
4. Prepare exhibit for Friday’s event
5. Check in on Mom
6. Get info. to time share people
7. Review Dana’s video
8. Re-seed back lawn
9. Discuss online marketing idea with Richard and Ellen
10. Outline Radio Show with guests for 2 months

Just keep with it. You will begin to feel the water line lowering in your mind…breath returning to normal…shoulders dropping. I wouldn’t worry about taking immediate action on anything yet. Enjoy the relief!

Then, as you feel inspired, begin to address the list, one thing at a time, day by day.

As this blogger Denise K so wonderfully summarized: Sometimes, we lovers of words can get a tad…backed up. Don’t let a constipated brain get in the way of you making a living.

Did you dump today?

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