Hi, friends 👋🏽. I’m Stacy Casson, Chief Play Officer at Things to Think About, LLC. With over twenty years of continuous improvement experience, I’ve learned to stay calm in a crisis—unless you’re that jerk in the white Tesla who doesn’t understand how indicators work. Get ready with me!
Is your calendar packed to the gills? Are you constantly double or triple-booked? Do you groan when your alarm goes off? You don’t have to face the overwhelm alone. I write this blog to help us get ready for the week ahead. As Dan Martell says, “A problem well defined is a problem half-solved.”
This week, we will seek inspiration from the Black Tarot written by Nyasha Williams and illustrated by Kimishka Naidoo.
Step 1: Celebrate Your Wins
Pause for a moment:
What’s one thing you accomplished this week—big or small?
Did you declutter your junk drawer?
Take a nap?
Complete that project?
This week, I completed baking season and visited a therapy horse farm. I also have been resting since, unfortunately, I came down with a crud bug.
Drop your win in the comments or share it with a friend! Now, let’s proactively plan for the week ahead to set ourselves up for success and reduce overwhelm.
Step 2: Define the challenge for the week ahead
Sometimes our past decisions come back to haunt us. I’ve been struggling with rest, and the Justice card reversed seems to indicate imbalance as an ongoing theme for the week ahead. Are you aligned with your values? Every time you choose to betray your values, you pay the cost. You’re tired because you decided to go out with friends even though you were exhausted. You’re beating yourself up over being late for that dance recital because you wanted to get one more report done.
Challenge: Reflect on the past few days. How many times have you said “yes” when you really meant “no”? What does that cost you? See if you can pause before responding to requests. It’s okay to say, “Let me think about it and get back to you.”
Step 3: A problem prevented is a problem solved.
We are a product of our environment. Are you surrounded by supportive people or infrastructure? For example, if you want to exercise in the mornings, do you have your workout clothes and equipment at hand? The friction of taking the time to look for it may deter you from being aligned with your goals. Do your relationships inspire or expire you? When you share your ideas, are they supported or picked apart?
Mini-exercise: Think about your last conversation. Did you feel drained or refreshed afterwards?
Step 4: Nudging success
Change is challenging. If your friends are not a good fit, it’s hard to break up with them. The Tower Reversed advises us to disrupt our old patterns. If your environment is not supportive, it’s challenging to let go of old ways. They say to dress for the role you want. You also have to act like the person you want to be. Future you doesn’t hit your snooze button. Future you says no to things that are not in your best interest.
Don’t fight it. My late husband once shared that in his faith journey, he didn’t like giving things up. He decided to add new things, just like the idea of powering up your food with fiber. You begin to get full on things that are good for you, and they eventually will replace the behavior you want to change. If it’s your friend group, try meeting new people. Be curious and try learning a new skill.
To recap:
• Identify where you are not aligned with your values.
• Review your current environment for root causes. There needs to be a balance between give and take.
• Add new habits and build on the momentum. For example, if you grab your phone first thing, listen to a meditation instead of checking your email. Or leave yourself a gratitude voice note.
Need a Little Extra Support?
If you’re finding it tough to carve out time for yourself or need a reset, I offer Calm Down Sessions designed to help you get the headspace you deserve. Sometimes, a quick chat is all it takes to get back on track.
Ready to tackle your overwhelm? Let me know what’s happening, and we can schedule a brief call to brainstorm solutions together. Book Now: https://calendly.com/thingstothinkabout/calm-down
What did you learn this week? What is one thing you need to release? Drop your thoughts in the comments or send me a message—I’d love to cheer you on!
Picture Descriptions: 3 cards. 1. Justice reversed—a grey card with a scale fashioned from a sword hilt with flowers in the background. A community of people holds down the left side to balance the other side. 2. Three of baskets. Three women enjoy a picnic. 3. The Tower reversed. A forest is decimated next to a cliff by the ocean.
