I rushed into an appointment with my meditation teacher. I had 1 minute spare. Early!

The course cost me a bomb years earlier so I was committed to making the most of the ‘follow-up’ factor.

I wanted to be a good meditator so I could feel chilled in the face of chaos. I mean life.   

Your effort is ruining your meditation she told me. Say what???

You think a busy mind is the enemy of meditation she told me. Effort is the enemy of your meditation.

I was striving for a “blissed out” experience but my trying tripped me up every time.

Are you a high-achiever?

Achieving helped me progress my career but was messing with my meditation benefits.

The benefits she reminded me, are in your life – not in the actual practice.

This was a HUGE AHA moment for me. Permission to stop trying. Could I???

I made every kid a fancy decorated birthday cake by hand. Every year. Dinosaurs. Frozen. Rainbow layers. Then I went back to my mate Betty Crocker. The kids did not even notice.

I can do this. So can you.

Effort and achievement are rewarded but like all superpowers, they have downsides.

Does this sound like you?

•  Driven to get results but stuck in tasks with no time for connection (it’s time wasted!).
•  You can do it all – so you do. As a result, you are a crappy delegator and developer. At worst a micromanager. A tired one.
•  You are passionate and motivated. It is all important.
•  You want feedback but you only listen to the negative stuff. If you don’t get feedback – you make it up and it is negative.
•  Caught in the self-esteem trap where you compare yourself to others and feel “less than”.
•  You feel guilty, like you are never doing enough even though you know you are doing your best.

Burnout is a creeper – it does not happen overnight. Sometimes we need to try-less. Compulsion to push yourself is the first step to burnout after all.

I know – that was me too.

We apply the ‘high-achiever’ mindset to nearly everything we do.

As in meditation – maybe your ‘effort’ is costing you and others?

Many are too busy to slow down, reflect and figure out another way so they keep going tolerating low level tightness in their tummy or chest.

I help my clients figure out where to apply effort and where to pull back so they can do and FEEL their best. This way they get the important stuff done including recovery. They learn workflows to build self-belief, manage stress and perform at peak minus burnout.

We run workshops for busy teams to give them space, permission, and tools to do great work and take care of themselves.  They grow together, share perspectives, and implement tools to effort where it matters most. 

As in meditation, they figure out what to let go of, how to hold boundaries and enjoy the wins.

If you labelled yourself a “bad meditator” – well done. Keep going.

If you labelled yourself a “non-meditator” – try again with less effort.

Here is a great meditation to re-set your leadership energy during the busy work day so you can finish the day as strong as you started. Lunchtime Boost Practice | Andrew Johnson, Insight Timer

I meditated on a park bench by a busy road yesterday. It was so bad it was good.

You’ve got this. Big growth love. 

Melissa

PS: If your team is struggling with busy-ness, fatigue, or focus, then the Chief Energy Officer Workshops are just what you need to give them the support and tools they need to boost engagement and productivity. Use this link to make a time to connect and we can make it happen.