Balance in a World that Values Overwork: Bringing Back Intuition and Nature

Hello, Fall Equinox!

I love seasonal shifts and not it’s not because I like pumpkin spice.
(Because I don’t and I’m not sorry about that.)
The Equinox is a day that reminds us of balance. And with that, I’m putting in little reflection prompts throughout this post so you can pause and turn inward a bit.

Mother Nature role models how to hold balance during time of transitions. So as we move from summer to fall here in the northern hemisphere, we switch from the go-go of summer energy to a slower, intentional cozy vibe of autumn.

Reflection: Balance to me FEELS like….Or When I am in balance I feel….

Out of Nature’s Cycle

And yet, following the flow of the seasons is not how modern capitalistic economies operate. Am I right?! And, yes, I am including US higher education in that. Rather, mainstream conditions us to override the seasonal shifts of balance. Systems need us to continue working at overproducing rates.

Having been in academia for a couple decades, this time of the year is a ramping up energy on many campuses (virtual and in-person). Classes have midterm assignments due, administrative paperwork and reports, more meetings, fall conferences, advising appointments, and on and on. Faculty knew that by October, students would start to feel the pressure too and more mental health needs showed up in conversations. Do you feel all that ick?

Higher education and much of the US workplace are so out of tune with Nature’s cycles because it runs counter to productivity. And yet, the pandemic has shown, we as individuals and together as a community cannot continue to be out of sync with our natural cycles.

Reflection: A list of where in life/work feels like struggle energy is….
Or I feel out of balance in these areas…

Overanalyzing

In addition to the need for a slower vibe, intellect or analytical processing is prioritized. I’d say to the detriment of our intuition and inner knowing. Creativity is the energy or force that spurs our work, and it requires spaciousness and cultivation as I’ve talked before with creative resets.

For most folks, we aren’t taught about creativity let alone intuition’s role in our work or lives. Yet, the creating, writing, or research processes are intuitive and analytical. There is a balance there that is needed. This is why when we hit a block or wall, we go for a walk, we change gears, we shift.

Our Western society rarely values inner knowing because when we make decisions for ourselves from our core, it often means someone can’t benefit off of us. It means we aren’t subject to other people’s wants or demands or influence. When we ‘just know’ we are more likely to uphold personal boundaries. Yet if we stay in overanalyzing, then we can be persuaded to other rational views or system’s rules and norms.

Reflection: When I am connected to my intuition or inner knowing, it feels like…
Or A time I was connected to my intuition or inner knowing was…

Staying stuck

But the overbusy and overproducing vibes stifle out creativity and so it creates a cycle of making decisions from an overly analytical place. We instead get stuck in:

• “Should-ing” ourselves all over the place

• Fear of failure

• Fear of making the ‘wrong’ choice or of making a choice at all

• Fear of being judged by others or worse, our super critical self

• Trying to control what isn’t ours to control

• Being stuck….

We get stuck in our own stuckness because we fear our Truth. Read that again. You fear your own Truth so you stay stuck in overanalyzing and over rationalizing so that you never have to to be responsible for the power of your Light - your Purpose. We fear our Truth because we’d have to make some radical changes in what we are no longer willing to tolerate from others, and ourselves!

Reflection: The Truth I am holding inside of me that scares the shit of me is…
Or The ways I stay stuck are…

Autumn is a slowing down to reap the benefits of summer projects and enjoy the harvest from the garden or local farmer. It is a shift into synergy and harmony and out of the muscling and struggle. This is a time for tuning in to our inner landscape as we observe the shifts in Nature.

Ask yourself then:

• What in my life needs to be (re)balanced?

• And moving intentionally, how can I take one small turtle step towards that (re)balancing?

• What can I let go of to release the struggle?

• How and where can I embrace more savoring and enjoyment?

Now get outside, play - observe - BE you!