Refilling Enthusiasm

How is that I can be a few inches above the ground, floating on enthusiasm one day . . .  the enthusiasm of God filling me to brimming, feeling great and productive, shining that light? And the next day, the sun is gone, the printer’s acting up, the cat is trying, I’m getting nowhere? All my enthusiasm drained out of me.
    
It happens, I know.  So, what can be done about it?  Perhaps I could have a back up supply ready.  That could be a list of those things that make me feel enthusiastic: my dream, my projects, my loved ones.

It’s true that sometimes I just need a little downtime. When I can’t make things happen, maybe it’s better to not try so hard.  Take a break, breathe a little.  Getting a change of scenery can sometimes work wonders.  

Maria Nemeth, in her brilliant book “The Energy of Money,” talks about energy leaks.  If we can leak money through small, unconscious expenses, we can also lose physical energy with small, unconscious expenditures of fear and worry.

Keeping a watchful, attentive eye on where my energy leaks are can be helpful.  SARK talks a lot about controlling our energy.  But it begins with observation.  Noticing what drains my energy helps to know how to patch it. Taking good care is always a good place to start.  Listening to find out what my body needs

Another solution might be to stoke the momentum that’s already going, using it. If I’m hot into a project, leave a little bit to get me started tomorrow.  Keep my enthusiasm up around a long-term project by remembering why I’m doing it or finding new ways to go.  Acting while the iron’s still hot always works. I could find small ways to keep the fires burning in between sessions with a project.

Just being conscious of where my enthusiasm level is will likely reveal many ways.  

Space is the Place

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about Spaciousness.  I’m finding that it impacts my life in many  areas.  For one thing, spaciousness means having the time to just breathe.  To spend some time just being, instead of always doing.  When life is spacious, there isn’t such a demand for multi-tasking.  It feels like I have more room when I only have to do one thing at a time.  When I can focus all my energy on what I’m doing, without a million distractions.  Those distractions suck up the space.  I suppose you could call multi-tasking an admirable trait.  But when you start adding more than 2 or 3 things, or you double and triple up repeatedly, you’re not really giving your best to anything.

An aspect of spaciousness is  being outside time.  Most of us are tied to the clock and what it tells us we must do.  I like not caring what time it is.  When you get in that zone, look up at the clock and cheer that you still have plenty of time to keep doing what you’re doing.  Man, that feels spacious to me!

Spaciousness permits room for sideline things:  an interesting email to read, a sweater that needs a button, a cluttered drawer asking for attention, a phone call from a good friend.

When there’s space you can breathe, you can spread your wings, express yourself  Sometimes, I don’t feel I have the space to write.  One of the beautiful things about writing is that you don’t need a lot of physical space or equipment. A lap, a clipboard, or a hard surface is usually enough.   A piece of paper and a pen or a laptop and you’re on your way. However, sometimes you need psychic space for the thoughts to well up and spill out.

It is one thing to be in an uncluttered space, free of distractions.  It’s another to have the open space in your head.  Wide, open spaces can be rare in our worlds.  But you can always generate that free, spacious feeling from within. 

I’m having fun finding and acknowledging those moments when I feel spacious.  As with most things, the more you notice, the more you discover.