Are you Gapping or Overlapping?

I wrote a blog about this years ago, and it’s time for a reminder - for me, and for you, perhaps...

I have always been one for extremes, and you might throw “well that’s why you got a diagnosis of bipolar”, but before that was ever on the table, I sensed it from my numerology, given that I have 3 eights - 08.08.81.

The appearance of the eights/the infinity sign in one’s DOB may or may not highlight something to you, depending on your beliefs, but for me, it was a sign of a extremes - both sides of the coin, if you will. If there’s an experience to be had, I feel like I’ve had the lot - not only from this life, but others too… from saint to sinner, my past/other lives had shown me a lot and integrating them has been no mean feat.

However, what I wanted to talk about is the extremes I can go to in my state of being, doing and resting or, in this case, not always.

For example, when I get my teeth into something, I want to finish it in one go.

Brave? Yes. Ridiculous? Absolutely!

We know how to “eat an elephant”, right?

And it's not in one go! Yet, every time I get going, the same gear kicks in - on-it-until-finished…

Urgh!

And that’s where the “gapping or overlapping” came to me some years ago, when observing my tendency to “ultra-focus” and then collapse for some hours, or even days, later.

Over time, I’ve developed different strategies to allow more space between jobs, but the matter comes up again and again, especially if I particularly dislike a job, or feel there is some time urgency (when there usually isn’t!)

So what can we do to help ourselves? Especially over this most festive, yet busy, time of the year with so many things we might be things to cram in?

Top tips for Gapping, not overlapping...

1. Prioritise your goals - Are they necessary today, this week, this month, or even, next year?!

This year, I realised I could choose just one major project a month, and work on it until it was done, and fit in the day-to-day jobs in too. This took so much pressure from me, because I, like many creatives, many started books and projects I’d like to finish, yet got in a pickle thinking of them all at once. The feeling of overwhelm was just so much until this year, when I figured this simple, yet effective hack.

2. Set a timer - half an hour of great focused work is better than 2 hours of overwhelm and confusion.

When I figured this, I’ve chosen a time with numbers I like (such as 22 or 33, and sometimes even 13), and then set to. I only have one job to do, and nothing else gets a look in. This way, I know I’ve got a clear time and there will be a rest coming up soon - if only to get up and walk around. If I want to set it again, then I can, but I don’t feel the pressure to.

3. Allocate time to dream, time to plan, and time to take action - What is it you need to do? Plan your day? Dream up the finished creation so you can pull it into reality? Or knuckle down?

Sometimes I’m in dream state, and I’m receiving ideas, and then too quickly try to finish the item. Better though, is when I write the ideas down and let them percolate. At a later time, it becomes time to plan the chapters, for example, and other times, it’s time to splurge out a first draft. It’s not all the same energy, and checking in to see which one feels right is great!

4. Make a prayer! - For ultimate clarity, make a prayer every morning to be supported in flowing through your best day, to be in service and present in all you do.

This could be the first step, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and I know this. However, it WORKS! As my coach teacher says, “This Sh*t Works!”. Every time I pray about anything I’m aiming to complete, it goes smoothly and I also know when I’m being nudged to change tack. Prayers literally make the different between feeling you’re pushing a rock up a hill, or gliding on the wind with Great Spirit.

Try this one, or try your own:

“Thank you Mother-Father God, Creator of All that Is, Source of All Life, thank you for supporting me today to be my best, and live my best day. May I be of service and full of joy in all I do, and guide me to meet the right people and find solutions when I need them. Thank you, thank you, thank you, and so it is.”

Ahhhh, even writing a prayer feels good, and I so love saying them, that I received a download today to write a book of prayers for a year when I was saying an opening prayer for a client this morning.

Working with Spirit (meaning working in tandem with Creator, our highest self, and our spirit team), life flows and feels lie a dream at times. You find yourself doing things you could never have dreamed of, and prayer has helped me in so many ways to get to hear.

Of course, we’re all learning, and I am still learning how to work efficiently whilst allowing joy into my life, as I too journey inwards over the winter to bring healing to old wounds and consolidate a bumpy year!

Sending so much love and so many blessings for a beautiful Christmas and Festive period and all blessings for the New Year too,

Caroline x

If you’d support to implement some of the tools mentioned above, or any other part of your life, reach out to me through carolinemaryandrews@hotmail.com or book a coaching call now, and see how you can step into alignment with your soul.