Are you swamped?

By Sharon Sayler

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I’m sitting here serving jury duty and can’t do my regular routine. (I’m not opposed to doing my civic duty, it’s just the timing.) Sitting here is leaving me feeling swamped with my To Do List and sucked-under… lots to do, plus it’s finally summer here in Oregon (we get so little summer, it is hard to buckle down.)

Well, what to do when surrounded by quicksand, alligators and swamped…. First, researchers from the University of Amsterdam have concluded that "a person trapped in quicksand is not in any danger of being sucked-under completely, that is, as long as they don’t flail around…."

Flail around?

So, that would mean movements without forethought cause the "trapped" to sink deeper. That would suggest it best to stop struggling before the "quicksand" pulls you deeper and ask, "How did I find myself knee-deep, right here, right now?"
Once you remember what got you knee-deep… determine a firm bottom-line for what you will and will not accept. Often times, that involves setting and maintaining boundaries with people.

Stay focused on this bottom-line. It is all too easy to be re-sucked into those old defeating attitudes and behaviors. This isn’t always easy. The quicksand research states that the "required force to pull a foot out of quicksand is about the force needed to lift a medium-sized car." Sometimes it feels that way when you are trying to change long-held habits too. Stay strong! When looking for that new bottom-line consider:

• What am I demanding or not demanding of myself?
• What will I accept and no longer accept in my life?
• What do I aspire to be?

Not desire, ASPIRE

Accept where you are now (No fantasy thinking allowed.)
Stop the momentum
Prepare for new direction
Innovate and integrate
Review all possibilities
Envision, Enact and Enjoy
Remember it’s not where you start–it’s where you finish!