Living with less pressure
I took this photo as the sun was coming up and I was just about to land back at Heathrow from a recent trip to Cape Town. And it got me thinking that this is one of the few occasions when time feels suspended, and it’s possible to feel less pressure by sheer dint of the fact that we have to just be in the moment.
Put another way, we’re not only literally on airplane mode when we’re in the sky, but also metaphorically speaking too as whatever might be going on in life, or we might have on our mind, there’s nothing we can actually do about it while we’re in the air.
I regularly had a similar feeling during lockdown. While I know this was a really hard time for a lot of people, I actually relished not being able to go out, or make arrangements with people. Like the pressure was off from all the usual busyness, which, for me, freed up so much time and headspace.
Thinking innocently creates the pressure
I’m sure if you asked 100 people what they thought caused us to feel pressure, there’d be a whole host of reasons relating to individual circumstances and external factors or events. But if we see that there’s no inherent pressure in any circumstance, and it’s only an innocent misuse of our ability to think that causes us to feel pressurised, the concept of pressure would likely dissipate.
Do without thinking and everything gets done
There’s a big difference between doing and thinking about doing, and it’s all the thinking we can innocently have about stuff that takes up our bandwidth. Like having all sorts of apps open on your phone at the same time … as soon you start shutting them down the connection speeds up. It’s the same for us with all those I should, must, have to or what if apps, which can quickly speed up your thinking and those feelings of pressure or overwhelm. That’s your sign to leave your thinking alone as best you can, stop for a minute and get quiet. The doing inevitably gets done in the space that opens up, but with a much lighter, easier feeling.
We can’t control the myriad thoughts that we have all day long, but we don’t need to once we see we’re the thinker and it’s the nature of thoughts to naturally come and go. And we don’t need to be on a plane to go on airplane mode … rather we can give ourselves permission to take a break, slow down and let our minds settle any time we want to.
If you’re feeling under pressure at the moment, I hope you find this nudge helpful.
All the very best for now
Tamsin
My focus this year is helping people to live in a nicer feeling. So if that resonates, and you’re drawn to the idea of living with less pressure, more living in the moment, and freeing up a heap of headspace and time in the process, here’s some ways to do that.
1 Sign up to my Living in the Flow insights series – you’ll receive a short, daily insight about living with less thinking over the next seven days … see it as a quiet moment to clear your mind and set you up for your day.
“Looking back now, I can see how far I’ve come; how much easier and less stressful life has become living in the flow. I’ve moved from problem-focused, frustrating indecision and procrastination to easy, dynamic, motivated flow in all aspects of me and what I love to be and do.” Cathy, Gloucestershire, UK
2 Taster ‘nudging’ conversation
– a free 30 minutes call to get a fresh perspective on how we create our experience, and how that can change things for the better.
3 Transformational nudging package
– invest a little time in you to create a whole new relationship with your thoughts, and give you greater freedom and peace of mind (3 spots available).