Just like nature, we also go through seasons. Some seasons are filled with purpose, clarity, and direction. Other seasons are filled with uncertainty and doubt. There are seasonal transitions from cold to warm, from snow to rain, from gray to color, or from bare to bloom. It’s during these in between times that we can deeply feel like we’re in limbo. When that happens, next can feel murky.

So how can we improve how we handle next, especially when we’re in the uncertain mode? I have a few ideas, but I’d love to hear yours too.

5 Ways to Handle Next When You Are in Limbo

Feel the Limbo

If you quiet yourself, see if you can identify where in your body the angst is felt. Do you sense a rumbling in your belly or butterflies swirling about? Do you feel tightness in your shoulders or jaw? Is your breath shallow? Is your head pounding with pressure? Where in your body is your limbo-state showing up? Notice it. Acknowledge it. Sit with it. Take some slow, deep breaths in and then out. As you exhale, see if you can soften the tension. Practicing mindfulness by getting in touch with how our body feels and helping it to relax, will make us more available for the present and for next.

Sip Some Tea

Slowing down to enjoy a cup of tea (or coffee, if you prefer) can be a kindness you give to yourself during this waiting time. Allow yourself to focus on making the tea. Watch the bubbles boil. Listen to the sound of pouring the water into your favorite mug. Notice the clear water turn darker as the tealeaves brew. Breathe in the aroma. Savor that first sip of warm tea as it enters your mouth, travels down your throat and to your belly. It’s as if you’re drinking a warm hug. Leisurely experience the tea-drinking ritual as you slowly calm yourself and prepare for next.

Exercise Some Patience

We can be so terribly hard on ourselves. Especially during transitions, we are often missing certain pieces that we need to make decisions. We have to wait a day or a week or a month or more.  And you know what? We don’t like to wait, do we? Remember that you won’t always be in limbo. Recall other times when you exercised patience to secure the outcome you desired. Remember that instant isn’t always possible or even desirable. Be patient. Have confidence that in time you will find the answers you need to figure out next.

Form a Habit

Sometimes we postpone doing something that’s good for us, while we’re waiting for next. However, we can use this transition time to form one new habit that will have positive life-affirming benefits. Think about something simple and achievable. Think about something that will make you feel healthier, happier, or more content. Think about one thing that you currently aren’t doing, but would be beneficial if you began. You could brush your teeth each morning and night. You could take a 15-minute walk each day. You could declutter one surface every day. You could write one sentence a day in a gratitude journal. You could meditate for 10 minutes a day. You could...

Do One Thing

One of the benefits of moving forward is that feeling of accomplishment or endorphin rush we experience when we get stuff done. And while it’s important to focus on doing things that matter for our larger goals, sometimes, it’s helpful to just do one thing. One and done. It’s not a regular or daily thing. It’s just one thing. That thing doesn’t have to be huge or complicated. It does need to be something that will lift your spirits. You’d be surprised how small the thing can be. Don’t underestimate the power of organizing your junk drawer, or filling up a bag of clothing to donate, or calling a friend you haven’t talked with in a while. Try it and let me know what happens. We can do one, small thing, which will promote positive feelings and help pave the way for next.

What helps you navigate through to next when you’re in limbo? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation!

We’ve arrived together. It’s the first day of a new year. The possibilities are endless for all of the wonderful encounters, fabulous projects, happy moments, and amazing adventures that can happen in the next 365 days. Opportunity abounds. There’s nothing quite as powerful and exciting about the chance for fresh start or reset. Mostly though, on this first day of the New Year, I am filled with gratitude. I’m grateful for my family and friends, for the change of seasons, for work that I love, and for this beautiful community of sharers.

The past few weeks I’ve had special days with family and friends from large gatherings to intimate dinners to simple phone calls, texts and emails. My heart is full as I think about all the people I love and how much they mean to me.

Today also marks the 25th anniversary of my organizing business, Oh, So Organized! It’s hard to believe that two and a half decades have passed. I’ve had privilege of working with and helping hundreds of clients with their organizing challenges. When I began my business, our daughters were just babies. Now they are young, independent adults making their way in the world. I’ve had the joy of raising our daughters while growing a business. I’ve learned that seeds that we water and nurtured do grow. I’m so very grateful.

Very often people like to pick a “word of the year” that drives their choices and decisions. I don’t always do this, but this year in particular one word is calling to me and it’s gratitude. I don’t know the forms it will take or the paths that it will lead me, but it is the word that I’m choosing to color my year.

Wishing you a happy, healthy, joy-filled, and organized New Year! I am so grateful for you.

What are you thinking about as you begin this year? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation!

Change happens whether it’s sought or imposed. Our perspective or view about change influences one aspect of our experience. Another part relates to our awareness of change. There are many ways we notice change has occurred. Discovering awareness channels are as important to the change process as change itself.

How do you see change?

Revisiting

One experience that consistently enables me to see change is by re-reading passages in my journal. While I don’t write daily, I write often enough to capture questions, challenges, fears, and accomplishments. By taking the time to visit what was, I’m able to see growth and change that’s taken place. It’s a very concrete awareness channel. 

Weathering

I’ve written often about the influence on me of living in the northeast with four distinctly different seasons. In my book, The Other Side of Organized, the seasons create the arc for finding your balance between chaos and perfection. Each season has a flavor and mood. Each season brings an opportunity to reset, to review, to alter. Each season brings visible change to the external and internal landscapes. Every three months the changing season functions as my automatic awareness channel.

Reacting

In a recent conversation with a friend, she described a change she noticed by observing reactions (her own and others) during conversations with family and friends. Her goal was to approach interactions with curiosity rather than a judgmental attitude. Both her own and other’s experiences of their conversations were transformed in a positive way. Growth and change were visible through her newly developed awareness channel.

I’d love to hear your thoughts. What are your awareness channels? How do you see change? Come join the conversation!

If you live in the northeast, maybe like me you’re ready for winter to give way to spring. Just when you thought there couldn’t be any more snow, new flurries descend on the already large piles. Don’t get me wrong. I’m grateful too. I love the pristine, white landscape in our backyard, the soft, snuggly blankets, and soothing cups of hot tea. I’m also quite ready for a change to warmer days, lighter clothes, and greener landscapes.

The seasons provide a continuous change cycle. I understand the value and influence the change of seasons has. When mindfulness is present, each season helps us focus on and appreciate the visual beauty, change cues, and ways we engage.

Change brings hope. Each season offers us the opportunity to shift, reflect, and make adjustments.

Winter

Winter marks the end of one year and the beginning of another. As the white snow covers the ground, its quiet infuses me with a sense of peace and calm. The stillness allows me to hear myself think. Despite the chill in the air, I feel hopeful for the opportunity to reflect, change, and begin again. I know that the deep freeze provides the essential nourishment for new growth.

Spring

Spring is a time for renewal. As the air becomes warmer, a new sense of hope and joy surround me. I notice the moist smell of the earth, the magical sight of greenery reappearing, and the abundance of flower buds opening. Color returns. My core feels lighter as I appreciate and feel inspired by the transformation before me. There’s an urgency within to embrace change now.

Summer

Summer is more relaxed. I notice the blue sky and dull low hum of a plane above. The thump of a hammer is audible in a nearby yard. There is an ever-so-slight breeze and occasional whooshing sound of an air conditioner. The air smells good, clean, and fresh. It’s not too hot, but warm enough so that no goosebumps appear on my body as the breeze blows. I’m grateful that summer has arrived. The slower pace encourages me to suspend dramatic changes and just be.

Fall

Fall is such an obvious change season with bold shifts in colors, temperatures, and light. The leaves, which fall, crunch, and swirl around me seem to sing change. I sense internal shifts too, which make me feel unsettled. Perhaps this is because change is so apparent. What I see makes me feel like I too need to change and make way for something different. There’s a rumbling and sense of being uncomfortable. This is not a bad thing. Change is nudging me to move forward.

How is change present as you experience the shifting seasons? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Come join the conversation.