When We Do Less, We Experience More
Last week, I was juggling work deadlines, interviewing interns, wrapping up 2025 contracts and packing up to head out of town for two weeks. On Wednesday morning after my meditation, I looked at my too-full work-day and realized that while I “could” pull off this schedule, it would wipe me out. So I canceled two afternoon commitments and exhaled, feeling spaciousness flood my body.
One of our favorite mantras in our office is “Just because I can, doesn’t mean I should.”
Doing less in a culture that prizes busyness and productivity takes courage and a deep commitment to our own well-being.
Overdoing taxes our adrenals and keeps us from experiencing life in the present moment. The hyper-stimulation and constant busyness we’ve become accustomed to, comes at a cost to our well-being. When we do too much:
- we are more distracted. Even when we’re together, we aren’t present and focused on each other, and we don’t feel fed by our time together.
- we are overly focused on activities, goals and outcomes, which sends the powerful, subconscious message to those around us—and to ourselves—that we are only worthy if we’re “doing.”
- we’re in constant motion and rarely rest, we are perpetually overextended, and so we become resentful and even grumpy, at both ourselves and others.
- physically, we feel chronically tired and exhausted. Our poor bodies, overworked and overstimulated, rarely have time to truly rejuvenate (and this chronic stress can lead to depression, feeling unsettled and constant, low-grade anxiety).
- over time, the ongoing stress from our relentless pace affects our bodies’ immune, endocrine and hormone systems, which are frequently out of balance. Living in “fight or flight” around the clock has become the norm, and this stress is the root cause of 90% of all disease.
We’re living in the era of the unknown—a whole new frontier—that requires us to have more space to breathe, think, dream and digest. We’re craving more time to just be—so we can actually integrate all these new ways of seeing and being.
This week I’m reminding myself that when I do less, I experience more. And I’m continuing to ask, “Is this the best use of my energy and talents?” I’m slowing down and making the conscious choice to lower my expectations, give myself full permission to pay less attention to my to-do list and more attention to what makes me come alive.
My colleague author/teacher Joan Borysenko says, “Remember—your to-do list is immortal. It will live on long after you’re dead.”
Warmly,
UPCOMING SELF-RENEWAL EVENTS ~ FOUR OPPORTUNITIES TO FIND YOUR CENTER:
- October 25 – 27th ~ Soul Tending: Cultivating Grace, Power and Intuition ~ A Women’s Self-Renewal Retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health (Berkshire Mountains, Western MA). From stillness comes discernment. Your soul is calling, are you listening? Join me for connection, replenishing rest, divine natural foods cuisine, song/movement, restorative yoga and more. Packages start at just $635 for this soul-nurturing weekend. Learn more and register
- Secrets to Facilitating Life-Changing Women’s Groups/Retreats in Uncertain Times ~ the training course. Are you passionate about empowering other women in your area? Would you love to lead women’s groups/retreats this fall? Connection = medicine. Created by Renee, this beautiful, self-paced video course–based on our wildly popular, now-retired 18-year-old Facilitator Training Program–offers everything you need to start facilitating women’s circles/retreats. Download today; available 24/7. Only $195 for a limited time. Learn more.
- December 21st ~ Solace: A Deep Rest Winter Solstice Retreat ~ A 2.5-hour live virtual retreat experience on the longest night of the year. Learn More/Register.
- *SAVE THE DATE* Friday, April 25th, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. The North Carolina Creativity Conference for Women: Wild, Awake & Alive. Lake Logan Conference Center, Canton NC. Learn more.
Subscribe here to Live Inside Out, a weekly blog written by mindfulness coach/author/speaker and self-care evangelist Renée Peterson Trudeau. Passionate about helping men and women find balance through the art/science of self-care, Renee has been facilitating high-impact, interactive workshops for Fortune 500 companies, national nonprofits/conferences and organizations/teams worldwide for 25 years. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Fast Company, Good Housekeeping, Yoga Journal, AARP Magazine, Spirituality & Health and more. She and her team have certified more than 450 facilitators in 10 countries around the globe to lead self-renewal groups/retreats based on her pioneering self-care curriculum. She’s the author of two books on life balance including the award-winning The Mother’s Guide to Self-Renewal: How to Reclaim, Rejuvenate and Re-Balance Your Life. She and her husband live in Western North Carolina and their son lives in New York. Her latest creative venture is Wild Souls Nature Adventures. More on Renee here.
