“A generous heart is always open, always ready to receive our going and coming. In the midst of such love, we need never fear abandonment. This is the most precious gift true love offers, the experience of knowing we always belong.”
-bell hooks, All About Love: New Visions
It's time to talk about abandonment and being ghosted in our projects or business. Welcome to Solo Worklife Meditations. If you work alone most of the time and experience that mental chatter that's a bit too strong because there's nobody to bounce your ideas or stress off of, then you, my friend, are in the right place.
Are you a business owner, a solopreneur, digital nomad, remote worker, or content creator? It doesn't matter. These meditations are crafted with you in mind.
If you're new here, welcome.This meditation is part of the Solo Worklife Meditations project, which includes a podcast, YouTube channel, and a newsletter. The newsletter contains the new episode information. Plus, I'm sharing things that are helping me through my own solo workday.
For example, in the last newsletter issue, I shared three personal grounding moments. 1. a down to earth discussion on medical breakthroughs, not ozempic, 2. a sleep question of utter importance and 3. a good clarity moment that will change your cooking. It changed mine.Check it out at soloworklifemeditations.substack.com.
This is a three part meditation. The first part is an affirmation, the second a breathing exercise, and the third is a small body movement.You can be sitting or lying down, however you feel most relaxed. However, please do not do this meditation while driving.
Close your eyes if that's comfortable for you.
If not, you can stare at something if you like. In fact, if you want to look at something beautiful, feel free to view the image on the YouTube video version of this podcast. They will always be relaxing images I've taken myself.
being ignored
not getting the attention you want
fading away
Sometimes we get so involved in a project that our timeline doesn't match those we're helping or that are involved with us in the project. And sometimes that leads to them going away temporarily and sometimes forever.
This never feels good.
We've invested our time, our energy, and our passion, and what we're working on, but we don't get to decide everything. Unfortunately, other people have priorities that do not include us.
I know the nerve, but they do. There are many factors that might interrupt a creative project. Some will know and some we won't.
It's frankly none of our business. What is our business is our mental and emotional health, so we need a shift in perspective. I choose what I focus on.
We are passionate and invested in what we're working on. We are in. But when we work with others, we are no longer alone.
I can choose what I focus on.
There are many factors that can delay or stop a client or collaborator from applying to you. Illness, other deadlines, hesitation, finances and more.
I can choose what I focus on.
Sometimes we find out what happened and sometimes we don't. We need to get comfortable with this.
We're not in control of other people's actions and that's why we need to change the thing we can control: our perspective. three times. Now say it with me.
I can choose what I focus on.
I can choose what I focus on.
I can choose what I focus on.
Let's focus on the people who are engaging with us. Let's stay present and light, not heavy, and wondering, worrying, like our monkey brains are prone to do. I can choose what I focus on.
Let's have fun with our breath. Now, let's breathe in a swirl. Yes, I said swirl.
Like an ice cream swirl. Breathe in and move your head around as if you're sucking in a very stubborn clump of swirly ice cream. Let's start by moving clockwise, starting on the right.
So breathe in as long as you can. Now let's exhale, moving counterclockwise, going left, down, right, up. Let's do it again.
Let's breathe in. Going right. Breathe out.
Going left. As long as you're breathing, you're on track. Let's do it again.
One more. Go left and right to exhale. I can choose what I focus on.
Hmm. I can choose what I focus on. And today I want to focus on joy.
As we wrap up this meditation, we're going to move our hips just so gently.
We'll go from a circle to a square like this. Sitting at your desk chair, move your right hip to the back, right side of the chair.
Don't get up, don't fall over. Just lean a little to the back right, now to the front right. Now your left hip to the back left, and then to the front left.
That's it. So we're going back front on the right. Back front on the left.
Just a little bit of a lean. Here we go. Ready? Right back, right front, left back, left front.
One more time.
Right back, right front, left back, left front.
I can choose what I focus on.
And right now we're choosing to focus on movement. Right back, right front, left back, left front.
Choose to focus on the people, actions and thoughts that bring excitement, peace, and to be honest, a warm, fuzzy feeling. We cannot control others, but we can control to some extent what we focus on unless it's an emergency, and then we really should focus on that situation.
As you go back to work, remind yourself I can choose what I focus on. Feel free to open your eyes now. Thank you so much for joining me for this meditation.
If there's an aspect of solowork life that you'd like me to focus on in future seasons, please do feel free to reach out. Soloworklifemeditations.substack.com I'd love to hear from you.
Alright, get back to work now (giggle)