“My heart is at ease knowing that what was meant for me will never miss me, and that what misses me was never meant for me.”
~Imam Al-Shafi’i
We seem to be driven by FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). We spend way too much time scrolling social media for what our “friends” are doing. We say yes to networking cocktails that we don’t want to attend. We attend meetings we don’t need to be at. We take on projects that we’re not engaged in and don’t have time for.
We’re afraid we’ll miss something important.
I remember a long time ago when I had a humungous stack of magazines and articles in my office. I’d put them in that pile for reading “when I had time,” but the pile kept growing whilst my time to go through them did not. It was seriously stressing me out.
Until I remembered this quote, and I remembered that I could trust that if I really needed some of the ideas or information in that pile, they would get to me some other way. I recycled all of it, somewhat guiltily, and then felt a huge wave of relief.
It helps when I remember that I don’t have to be a part of everything. I don’t have to remember everything or know everything. It’s not possible to do any of these anyway, and the expectation that one should is debilitatingly wearying.
Our minds and bodies and souls are on sensory overload. There is too much data and information coming at us or lurking down some internet rabbit hole waiting to be found. All of this drains our energy and keeps us from focusing on what is actually at hand.
When, instead, we can trust – and be at ease – we can free ourselves for the important information and experiences that are meant for us.
If you enjoyed this post, you can read more like it in our book, The Power of Thoughtful Leadership: 101 Minutes To Being the Leader You Want To Be, available on Amazon.
To be more at ease with letting go of needing to know and do and have it all, contact Lisa at lkohn@chatsworthconsulting.com.
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