Try the things you have been neglecting – open up the document you need to work on; package up those parcels that need to be sent; read that book on your shelf. These sound like simple steps, but when you’re feeling a bit bleurgh and demotivated and lacking in energy, all of these things can seem like big tasks and easy to put off until later.
Try the things you have been neglecting – open up the document you need to work on; package up those parcels that need to be sent; read that book on your shelf. These sound like simple steps, but when you’re feeling a bit bleurgh and demotivated and lacking in energy, all of these things can seem like big tasks and easy to put off until later.
Who would you be if nobody was watching?
Who would you be if you knew nobody was judging you?
These are questions that came to me recently. Immediately after, I realised that these questions come at a time when you are out of balance; when your life isn’t aligning with your true self.
Ask yourself those questions now – are you honouring your true being? Your true self?
Truth be told I have been lacking in inspiration the past few months. Life has been manic with all of the changing rules and regulations surrounding Covid; society opening again and all of the other bits and pieces that come with life.
I know I’m not the only one – people thought that getting back to ‘normal’ would immediately result in everything feeling better but in actuality, it seems that just as draining as those early weeks and months of Covid were, so too are these days of transition – days where you feel tired, despite the fact you just went to work today.
It’s understandable then that we might be feeling a little lacking – lacking in energy; lacking in good vibes; lacking in balance.
Balance – that’s exactly what I want to talk about today. This simple word and sometimes this ever-elusive feeling is what is needed at a time when everything seems in flux. Balance will inshaAllah lead to the feeling of stability which in turn can lead to feeling inspired once again.
If you do not feel under attack; under threat i.e. a trauma response – as has happened when Covid hit and now that we are going back into ‘normality’, then you can get back to the seemingly luxurious add-ons to life like inspiration. So how can we get there? Let’s take a look.
Do it, even if you don’t feel like it, but give yourself grace – sometimes inactivity is just what we need to soothe us and simply allow us to be – a seeming luxury in a world that seems obsessed with doing. Having said this, life goes on and I’m sure you must have things you need to be getting on with, even if you’re really not feeling it/just not feeling inspired.
In these times, you really need to put your ‘adulting’ hat on and just get on and do it. Do it to the best of your ability at this moment in time – if that falls short of what you would normally aim for. Guess what? That’s ok. I’m not saying lower your standards; I’m saying that at moments like this you need to give yourself the grace and appreciate that you’re trying. You really are.
Wallow if you need to – when people are telling you to snap out of it and do it even if you don’t feel like it, it can be easy to fall down the toxic positivity route. In other words, positivity which is unrealistic and misaligned with what is actually truly happening with you right now and a failure to acknowledge how you’re doing. The takeaway from this? Wallow if you need to. Let it out, but know when it’s time to move on to the next step.
Slow down – when life gets to this point, it can feel like we’re running around from one task to the next. Yet, ironically no time for ourselves. My advice? Slow down – take that extra ten minutes to drink your tea; go sit alone in the garden and reflect; sit that extra bit longer on the prayer mat once you’re done praying. Life will make more sense.
It’s once you slow down that you can find yourself again; it’s once you slow down that you can try to get that balance back. Inspiration can’t come when you’re running from one task to the next – let it in. It wants to find you!
Surround yourself with good – when life gets imbalanced it can start to feel like you’re all alone and it’s you against the world. Surround yourself with like-minded people in these times – the ones who will listen and even if you don’t talk they’ll understand you. If you don’t have such people in your life right now, perhaps now is the time to start seeking them. Try to think of places (whether physical or online) that you could find like-minded sisters to help by their mere presence. More to the point, having them in your life will inshaAllah ensure getting to this point of imbalance will be a rarity or at the very least, easier to bounce back from.
Seek His Guidance – Quran is Allah speaking to us; Salah is us speaking to Allah. In moments of feeling lost, it might be really easy to switch on the TV and try to forget yourself and the day by watching some brainless, fluffy shows. That’s ok – do it if you need to. But again we come back to that word – balance. The truth is: what you’re seeking will never come from those TV shows; watch them as much as you want – you won’t feel soothed.
The Quran on the other hand, once you open it and even read one ayah, everything else will fall away and all will become quiet. If you do not understand the Arabic, then make sure you read the translation as well at moments like this. You’re seeking a balm for the soul – this will be it.
Try the things you have been neglecting – open up the document you need to work on; package up those parcels that need to be sent; read that book on your shelf. These sound like simple steps, but when you’re feeling a bit bleurgh and demotivated and lacking in energy, all of these things can seem like big tasks and easy to put off until later.
Now, come back to the questions you asked yourself at the beginning:
Who would you be if nobody was watching?
Who would you be if you knew nobody was judging you?
InshaAllah, following these steps your answers to these questions should feel more aligned with the life you’re currently living. If not, then rinse and repeat! Don’t worry, it’s a process – embrace it.
Have you tried these steps before? What else would you add?
This article was first published on Blogging Believer, republished on TMV with the author’s permission. To read the original article, click here.
