Are you on the struggle bus or in the flow limo?
I heard this analogy on a training call recently and it landed hard.
I often find myself on the struggle bus. Based in a belief that good work = hard work that struggle bus can look really appealing. It can feel ‘good’ in a warped, martyr-ish kind of way. Am I really succeeding if it feels easy? Am I even allowed to use that word?
And flow limo brought up all sorts of resistance – privilege, entitlement, greed.
How interesting!
I have learnt to get really curious about negative thoughts when they arise – especially when they feel particularly icky – jealousy, judgement, superiority. Yuck. They feel horrible and it is hard to admit to those feelings showing up. But they always have a gold nugget for me to discover in among the muck.
So how could it feel to choose the flow limo?
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes the state of flow as:
"… being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz."
Until a few years ago I believed I could only be in this state while pursuing leisure activities. It didn’t even occur to me I could feel this in my work. I was a season ticket holder on the struggle bus!
I now know that when I am in flow I do my best work. People who work with me benefit hugely from me being in a state of flow. And yet, the struggle bus still shows up and I find myself hopping on for a while. Usually when I am out of my comfort zone, have allowed fear to decide what the mode of transport is for a while, or when I am tired and ignoring my own best advice to replenish, replenish, replenish.
So, here is my commitment, made publicly here, today, to you. I am no longer choosing the struggle bus. It isn’t taking me where I want to go, it’s not even on the right road.
I choose flow.
I choose ease.
I choose joy.
And I know this is the place I can have a far greater impact from.
What do you choose?
|| Caroline Doran || Coach | Facilitator | Trainer || Book a call here ||