Escaping The Mundane

Do you ever have those days when you don’t even want to get out of bed? You know, the ones, when you lay there and think “here we go again” or “why even bother?”

I remember being so tired of the same thing day in and day out, feeling like the man from the commercial, stumbling to the alarm clock and saying “time to make the donuts” (Do you remember that one?) Yes, I was physically exhausted, but it was more than that. It was the feeling of being stuck on a wheel that was taking all of my energy but really taking me nowhere.

I heard someone say recently that if you are physically tired you should rest, but if you are mentally tired you should get moving. This my friends, is a gem of advice. For me, sometimes that means to get moving physically, like dancing in my kitchen and others it means get moving by way of taking action and making some changes.

“If you are physically tired you should rest, but if you are mentally tired you should get moving”

And I have made some major changes since the days of alarm clocks and hamster wheel life, so it surprised me when recently a similar “stuck” feeling crept in. I was having trouble feeling motivated, creative and my focus was slipping. Once I recognized what was going on I knew I needed a new perspective, a change of scenery and some adventure. While I love working from home & setting my own schedule, sometimes I just need to get out of my own head and make room for new creativity. I quickly learned that the mundane can happen anywhere if we are not careful.

My remedy for this is to get outside of my routine as soon as possible. Whatever my schedule will allow. If I can take a trip to the mountains to refresh and recharge-great! But it doesn’t always have to be that drastic.

A few key factors that have helped me so much

• break in routine
• change of scenery
• physical activity
• get outside

Here are a few examples of how I incorporate these ideas:

• meeting up with friends or going alone to a trendy, creative space like a coffee shop or cafe
• waking up earlier (or staying up later if that’s more your jam) than usual to create time for doing something specific that I love like being outside, exercising or reading a new book
• have a meal outside
• learn something new, anything from a craft, skill or personal development and growth mindset books or podcast.
• Getting out of my comfort zone. Pushing past fears is not easy but it has a big pay off in personal growth and mindset.
• Walking in nature
• watch the sunrise or set
• Bike ridding on beautiful trails
• Kayaking
• work from a different location like a cafe or library
• swimming
• gardening
• travel/explore new places
• ask myself and those I trust about what isn’t working and what may need to be changed
• set new goals and make a plan to attain them

Those are just some of my favorites ways to beat the mundane and keep life fun and creative, I would love to hear yours