I’ve found it helpful to ask myself, from time to time, “what am I not at peace about?” I share this with you because you may find it useful, too.
For example, for about a month I have had this “uneasy feeling” about my blog. My intuition tells me there is something that has changed that needs to be fixed. Things that crossed my mind were that it seemed to load a little slower (see the previous post) and I noticed that a few people had unsubscribed from the email updates. Maybe my writing style had changed without me realizing it directly. Maybe my WordPress database had become bloated and needed compacting. Lots of things were crossing my mind, and in general they left me feeling “not at peace” about my blog. So, I have to work on that, and it is best to do it methodically and analytically, instead of just wondering.
A less trivial example might be that you do not feel at peace because you are worried about layoffs. So many, many people are getting laid off now because of the recession, and it would be natural for the possibility to cross your mind. You can let it gnaw at you, or you can take some action. For example, if nothing else, you can at least set down and figure out if you have enough of an emergency fund and if there are expenses you can eliminate or reduce. You might even decide you should talk with your boss about what he/she thinks could happen in your company. You might find from both of these activities that you are in better shape than you thought.
What you don’t want to happen is for the Pygmalion effect to take place: where you begin expecting to get laid off, and subconsciously act in ways that make that more likely.
Anyway, this was just on my mind and I thought I would share it with you. I have found over the years that it pays to listen to your intuition and it pays to write down and analyze, and take action on, things that keep you from being at peace.
Hi Bruce, my wife and I live with the fact that we could be layed off at any time. But, we are putting things in place so we can survive if this should happen. We have made changes in our spending, like not eating out as much and cooking at home. Trying new rescipes has actually made this fun. We are living our life and putting things in place in case the worst happens. People shouldn’t just sit around and worry. You only go around once in this life, try and make the best of it.
Good points, Ray. Must be scary, though, with the thought that both of you could be laid off. I’ll sure keep you in my thoughts and prayers.