The Pause that Creates
Pausing for fresh perspectives and creative breakthroughs... about 4 minute read
Burnout and I are old, familiar friends. While I don’t look forward to seeing Burnout on life’s dance card, I at least know how this dance will go. Luckily, I’ve built up my resilience quotient in recent years, so bouncing back from Burnout doesn’t take as long as it used to & I get to move on to the next dance partner: Create.
The key? Creating a new story around whatever the invitation Burnout received.
There is a video from Jocko that talks about how no matter how bad any news is, he responds to it with the word, “good.” And it really sums up that when things don’t go our way, or we reach burnout or find ourselves stuck, there is ALWAYS opportunity within that if we will just look for it.
So, what do we do to ditch Burnout? We create.
First, we must create space. Space to journal. To reflect. To breathe. To set intention.
Second, create ritual. Ritual that signifies to our brain that we are ready to switch dance partners. Creating space is part of this. Ritual is a step that just anchors this in. Go for a walk. Light a candle. Paint. Sketch. Journal through the same exercise every time you reach burn out. Have a burnout rescue playlist (don’t play it in random order. Always play it in the same order). Ritual creates a pattern that your subconscious recognizes.
Once we’ve created the space and performed our ritual, then we must break free. We don’t move on until we discover the lessons that Burnout showed up to teach us. Where are we now? What led to burn out? What are the emotions? What false stories of belief have we adopted that we need to reframe and rewrite? What is a step in a new direction with our new story can we take right now?
This is our pause that creates. Creates our new story. New energy. New directions.
In my own life, when I recently took the time to pause and step back. I re-discovered my own love and passion for storytelling and decided to create a The Family Storyteller Mastermind…
to help me avoid burnout that I always seem to reach when pursuing this dream. I kept getting stuck at packaging and delivery of this system. I decided to enlist the help of my audience as I finally create this system this year. I’d love for you to check that out. The best person to tell your stories is YOU. I’m only a guide!
If you landed here from the Pause blogroll this month, please consider becoming a free subscriber to Life Souvenirs.
I hope that you will comment below and say hello and then share this post because nearly all of us bump up against burnout from time to time.
Last thought: Even Jesus knew the power of pause.
The next morning, Jesus got up long before daylight, left the house while it was still dark and made his way to a secluded place to give himself to prayer. Mark 1:35 TPT
After the crowds dispersed, Jesus went up into the hills to pray. And as night fell he was there praying alone with God. MT 14: 23 TPT
He also prayed in the garden right before his betrayal. He knew how powerful the Pause is for bringing peace to our soul no matter what is to come.
Thank you for reading today!
MelAnn
Hope Writers Blogroll This Month - Topic: Pause
Pause: How to Take an Adult Time Out by Amy Cobb
Pause in His Presence by Sharla Hallett
Power of the Pause by Ashley Olivine
Don’t Stress! Pause & Refresh by Regina Marcazzo-Skarka (requires wordpress login to read just fyi)
When Hitting Pause is What We Need by Dianne Vielhuber
The Pause that Creates by MelAnn
Two More Resources on Selah: The Pause
I always find that clarity, direction and peace comes from taking the time to pause - especially when life feels frantic and overwhelming.
Thanks for the mention!!!