Well, this has been the year. Covid has been around for a year now and the back to normal life will be slow to arrive. I know if you are like me, this is starting to get irritating. Looking back, it did give me time to slow down and to make some changes. I’ve had the opportunity to explore new creative outlets and make some decisions.

I have been asking myself WHAT’S NEXT? WHAT DO I REALLY WANT IN MY LIFE AND FOR MY LIFE? I have even taken time to ask other women this question and some have never even thought about it. For me, I have thought about it SOOOO much that now I am a confused mess. The world is my oyster and I want to do it all!!! I have come to the conclusion that I suffer from LACK OF CLARITY!

For some of us, we’ve gone through college, started our careers, started buying houses and getting married and having babies before we actually sat down and considered these things. God knows, I am guilty! In my opinion, this very fact is what leads to so many of mid- and quarter-life crises, divorces, epic and dramatic career changes, etc. The lack of clarity then leads to massive emotional burnout!

Want to know if you suffer from LACK OF CLARITY? Check out the list below.

1. You’re constantly changing your mind. Have you found yourself bouncing from job to job to job? Have you been bouncing around relationships? Have you moved like a million times in the last couple years? Heck, have you been dabbling in a million different hobbies? Then you, my friend, are probably struggling a bit with a lack of clarity.
2. You’re overwhelmed by having too much to do. Sometimes people aren’t constantly bouncing around from one path to the next. Sometimes they’re not questioning the things that they’re doing with their life. Maybe they’re just doing everything! Stop! It’s a recipe for burnout, disaster and major overwhelm.
3. You struggle with minor decision making. I’m not talking the big life decisions here like your career, relationships, finances, etc. I’m talking decisions like what movie to see or what brand of cereal to buy or when to workout. AND I am totally preaching to myself on this one, too. If you find yourself struggling with similar minor decisions, you my friend are lacking some serious clarity. But, why would this be an indicator that you’re lacking clarity? It is called decision fatigue and it is a REAL thing. Seriously, your brain is burned OUT and exhausted because of lack of clarity on the bigger parts of your life. That seeps right down into those little decisions too.
4. You’re constantly questioning yourself. Maybe you’re not someone who changes their mind all the time…but maybe you are someone that questions the decisions you ultimately do make. Instead of the bouncing ball of mind changing, you are questioning everything… those what if questions leave you confused. What if I change my mind? What if this isn’t right for me? What if I fail? Guess what, these what if’s mean you are NOT clear on yourself.
5. You are chronically disorganized, distracted, and lethargic. Believe it or not, the mind controls the body. So when you struggle with making a decision you tax your brain and exhaust your body. When we’re constantly analyzing, changing our minds, questioning, doubting, ruminating, and second guessing our decisions, even if it’s happening subconsciously, it IS exhausting to our body. So the next time you choose to binge watch Netflix instead of doing something that will make your life better, you have lack of clarity.
6. You constantly feel anxious, overwhelmed, stressed, frustrated and confused. Haven’t had enough bad feelings yet? Here are a few more. Do you feel any of these? If so you are lacking clarity and it can get ugly.
7. You rely on your inner pollster. Brene Brown… preach it woman! At some points in our life and in our journey, we either get sick of trying to make decisions or we just don’t trust ourselves to make a decision. Now what?! The next best thing…ask someone else. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Getting input from other people – coaches, mentors, therapists, and friends can be important in leading to a decision, just DON’T give all the power of that decision to the other person! Warning – Red Flag on the Play… Disaster Ahead! Why? Because the ARE NOT YOU!

So now that you are as depressed as I am, what can we do about it? I am tired of living in a fog. For me, I know I am on the path to clarity when I begin to DO THE WORK. When I slow down, dig deep and get in touch with my authentic self. I love the idea of visiting your FUTURE SELF to see where he/she is. That is how you begin to create the road map to getting there.

So here are a few things to get you started.

1. take a personality assessment
2. dig into your values and write a personal mission statement for personal life and professional life
3. do some visualization exercises to see yourself living your fullest, freest and most authentic life!