Meet confusion ~ a close relative of overwhelm. It is one of my favorite avoidance tools. When I’m confused, I can’t be in action. There is no forward motion, no goal, no intention. I lose all clarity when I allow the veil of confusion to drape across the gateway between where I am and where I want to be. In the past, it has been my way of stepping back. Perhaps somewhere deep in my brain I’m processing something ~ new information, a different perspective ~ but I have no evidence of this. I only have the experience of being confused.
If I give confusion the power it can easily lead me into overwhelm. The more confused I get, the more the thoughts swirl around in my head. Nothing productive is going to come of this. These days, if I start to notice feeling confused…should I write this or that, do this or that, what if I tried this but maybe I should be doing that…when this kind of thinking starts to run the show, I use my grounding tools including:
1. Breathe! When in doubt, when in confusion, when in overwhelm…the first step is to breathe. Get reconnected to your breath. Simply take a deep, cleansing breath and exhale imagining the confusion being released with each exhale. Do that three times.
2. Visualize. If you are good with images, visualize something that helps you feel connected to the earth. I sometimes use tree roots growing out of the bottom of my feet or for those who work with their chakras, a root from the base chakra into the earth. Others use steel rods or vines.
3. Find a place of peace. Put your hands on your heart and breath into it. If it feels easy then leave one hand there and locate that place where the confusion is centered…possibly your head or solar plexus…the area will feel more tight and constricted. Put your free hand there. Now imagine connecting the place of peace with the place you are feeling the confusion and allow your breathing to transfer peace into the confused part until it is at ease.
4. Go back to your master list and your mission statement. Focus on your goals and every time a should comes up, evaluate whether it moves you forward in relation to your goals/mission. If not, set it aside.
5. Ask yourself what gifts confusion gives you. For me, it is typically about buying myself more time either because I’m facing a fear or resisting an outcome. When I am clear about what I am getting I can choose whether I feel this is a better reward than achieving my goals.
We’ll stop with five tools to avoid another opportunity for overwhelm to show up. You deserve clarity in your life. Use your new tools. Redesign your relationship with confusion and overwhelm so you can shift yourself back into action creating your inspired life.
