What Do You Need in Any Given Moment?
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How are you at knowing exactly what you need in any given moment?
This may sound silly but, really, how tuned in are you to what you really need, and not what you think you need or think you want.
Many of us get swept away by the day and how we think we should be functioning. When the workday comes to a close, we’re a little dizzy thinking about what happened. On these days, if you’re honest with yourself, you probably also realize you put your needs – be they physical, mental or emotion needs – on the back burner to get through the day.
This would be something you could easily recover from if it happened once in a blue moon. However, if busy days are your normal, and you don’t regularly check in with yourself to determine what you need, this episode is perfect for you.
Why Knowing What You Need is Important
This episode has come about because of a conference I attended last week. It involved travel and a welcome reception the night before 3 full days of sessions.
- Early morning flight – forgot to check in
- Got to the hotel and needed to respond to a slew of emails and messages
- Had lunch with a friend and went to the registration.
- Left with no time for a nap so took a shower to revive myself but it had the opposite effect.
- Did not go to the Welcome reception. I was bummed but know I made the right choice.
For the next few days I noticed I was constantly being pulled in two different directions: opportunity and self-care.
I intentionally started checking in with myself to see what I needed in any given moment. It was astounding.
What I needed ran the gamut based on how I feeling physically and emotionally- and that shifted throughout the day. What I needed ranged from water to conversation, absolute quiet and stillness to a walk out in the warm air.
There was a polarity of needing to engage and be a part of what was going on to needing to withdraw to think, reflect and rest.
At the end of the conference I had no regrets. I learned what I needed to learn, made connections with people I needed or wanted to connect with, and I returned to my home feeling healthy and well.
How to Know What You Need
In the past it was very common that I would return from a multi-day event utterly wiped out. Not this time.
I tapped into this when I did the Positive Intelligence program and now, I want to apply this even more to my day-to-day.
I’m going to shift my attention on you now to show what this would look like should you want to take this on for yourself.
Taking frequent mini-breaks throughout the day might be a new thing for you. If it is, you’re going to need support in the form of reminders to stop what you’re doing to check in with yourself. Is it a sticky note on your computer, a time block on your calendar or an alarm on your phone? What would work best for you?
You Need to Get into The Moment
Then get in the moment by getting into your physical senses. Take a few deep breaths, rub your hands, flex your feet and wiggle your toes.
Listen for the sounds around you. What sounds are far away from you? How about the sounds nearest you
What physical sensations do you feel in your body? Are you thirsty, hungry, or do you need to use the bathroom? Are you feeling any discomfort? Do you need to stretch? Are you warm, cold, or comfortable? Are some parts of your body warmer or colder that others?
Look at something around you with such attention and curiosity that you notice something that you haven’t notices before or doesn’t usually get your attention.
Now, to get present and in your body, you don’t have to do all these things but take a minute or two and give it your full attention. If you do, you’ll notice a shift, a relaxing of your muscles and a feeling of being in your body rather than in your head.
Next, ask yourself, “What do I need in this moment?”
If you asked yourself that question 20 different times it’s likely you would have 20 different responses. That’s normal because our needs shift.
Try it now. Get present in your body and answer the question, what do I need right now?
The hardest part will be giving yourself permission to get out of autopilot, and potentially change how you planned to spend your time to give yourself what you need.
An added bonus of this practice is you’ll be able to anticipate your needs better going forward.
Winter is Coming. You Need a Plan!
I’m nearly 49-years-old and over the years I’ve gotten pretty good at identifying and anticipating my rhythms. This practice brought it to the next level.
And with the winter holidays on the horizon, it can only help navigate any tricky situations to know what it is you’re going to need to keep your wits about you and enjoy the time you’ll spend with friends and family.
I’m curious to know, what are some things that you know you’ll need to not only be at peak performance, but to stay healthy and well in any given situation or time period?
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As always, I hope this was of value to you and here’s to your success!
Resources
Leadership Coaching. Find out more about my coaching process, the cost of coaching, or how to ask your employer to pay for you to work with a coach.
Register for the How to Get Mentally Fit webinar: Learn the 3 core muscles to build to gain mental fitness.
Saboteur Assessment: Find out which Saboteurs are impacting your performance, wellness and relationships, and how they do it.
Apply to be on an “On-Air Coaching” episode. Are you a female leader who has been promoted in the last year? Apply to be on the podcast.
Leadership Operating System Inventory. Wondering what kind of Leadership traits you have? Take this FREE, FAST self-assessment and find out more about yourself as a Leader.
Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to Doing. The book containing a simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.
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