Ebb and Flow

Sunday I watched one of my favorite programs Super Soul Sunday on OWN--if you haven't been watching this program I HIGHLY recommend it.  Sunday's guest was Panache Desai and he had a number of wonderful things to say.  The one that made me go 'hmm' was the concept that we are all flowing energy and the real way to achieve peace is to embrace where you are in the flow.

We all have natural cycles and rhythms of ups and downs. Good days and bad days.  Days we are über productive and days we are lucky to have gotten out of bed. When we FORCE ourselves out of the down energies or make ourselves enter a different energy before we are ready, we are not in touch with our natural cycle and the ride gets bumpier.

I have introduced a concept like this with some of my clients and frequently it is met with resistance.

"If I don't force myself to do something, it won't get done."

"If I allow myself to feel sad I won't ever get out of it."

"If I feel the pain it will swallow me whole."

All of these are normal, understandable thoughts AND not always valid.  I guarantee if you loosen the reins a bit you will notice that there are days that you get more done than others.  There are weeks when you are super on top of things and weeks when you aren't.  I have definitely noticed this in my own work.  When I just trust myself on the days that I am 'not feeling it' and just allow myself to be in that space I move out of it so much faster (and without all the monger talk).  It is when I don't feel like doing a certain task and then my monger beats me into submission that I get into more trouble.  Frequently when I am doing a task because I am beaten into submission my performance isn't as high and my enjoyment definitely isn't as great.  I can check the task off my list but it was usually painful to complete and I am not proud of the finished product.

When I accept myself completely during those days  (or even weeks) that I am not feeling as productive. When I give myself permission to just do the bare minimum I feel better.  I feel less restrained and less beaten down. And you know what?  I ALWAYS cycle to the other side. I always get things done, pick myself up, and accomplish what I need to.  In fact, when I fully experience the   'down' cycle I am more inspired, refreshed and excited during the up cycle.

I see it in my clients too. When they start embracing where they are in the flow rather than forcing themselves out of it, they feel better, they get more done and their overall life is better.

What about you?  Do you notice an ebb and flow to your life?  Are there times when you are more productive than others?