From your enthusiastic and heartfelt emails about the squirrel in my truck, I could tell that the topic touched a nerve. Apparently, I have a lot of overwhelmed readers who are in good company.

Simply put: you’re busy. You have a million commitments to your work, your family, your community, your inbox… not to mention the fact that you’re trying to keep it all balanced and maybe have a little fun from time to time.

So I wanted to make space in this Juicy Gems to share how to meet that need for retreat.

Resistance

Although you might think people would feel enthusiastic about taking a reprieve, most don’t. When they acknowledge how truly tired they feel, most people try to ignore it. It often feels overwhelming and even frightening to consider taking a break.

So instead of meeting that deep need, we make up reasons why we shouldn’t, can’t, don’t have time, don’t have money, etc. Indeed, there isn’t a lot of time or money to spare in most households today. You do have commitments and obligations to meet. But what’s the real cost to you?

What do you really gain in the long run by denying yourself the space and time you truly need?

At the heart of the matter

I believe that there nothing more important than nourishing your heart-spirit. Nothing. You weren’t born to be a slave to your work or your duties. You were born to live.

If you look in nature, you’ll see busy birds work at their nests, gathering food, raising young – and yet they also sit, fat and happy in a sunbeam, and sing for the sheer joy of it. Even our resident hummingbirds, the most active bird on the planet, sit in the tops of trees and just look around for whole minutes at a time.

Photo credit: Marc Langille – www.marclangille.com

If they can, can’t you?

It’s an inside job

The biggest challenge isn’t deciding what you’ll do with your retreat time. The biggest leap for most people (including me) is actually agreeing to do it. So, I’d like to offer 3 suggestions that might make that process easier.

- Set your intention

In a quiet moment, ask yourself: What kind of retreat do I really need?

And listen inside of you for messages from your heart. Images. Sensations. Just notice if anything comes up – and trust it.

If you feel the urge to squash the first things that come up, don’t. Be gentle with yourself.

Over a period of a few moments or even several days, allow yourself to dream up your idea of what a retreat might look like. Maybe it includes other people, or maybe not. Maybe it’s in your home, or away from it. Maybe it involves activity, or maybe doing nothing at all.

You get to decide. Dream a little.

- Create the space

Once you have a clear idea of what it is you want, then create the space in your life to have it.

About a month ago, I decided I needed a get-away-from-everything retreat at the end of this month. I haven’t done this in over 2 years and it felt like a huge leap.

• Commitments: In order to clear the space in my life, I spoke with and asked permission from more than a half-dozen people. Inspired Spouse, co-workers, business buddies, clients, etc. 10, to be exact. Some of them, multiple times. It was a little scary to be clear with them about how I needed their support and help, but asking them helped make space.

• Finances: I had to check my budget and make sure I could swing time off from work and spend money on my retreat. I was able to negotiate a discount on my accommodations. This made space in my finances.

• Calendar: I looked at my calendar again and again to make sure I hadn’t forgotten to close a loop or follow up on something. It took about a week to work out the details.

The good news? After all this clearing, I’ve made space for a whole week off next week. I’ll be completely unplugged. I’ll be spending 4 days at an abbey – a totally new experience for me. I can’t tell you how freeing this feels.

- Commit

Once you have an intention and you’ve made space to retreat, put it on your calendar (or however you remind yourself).

When possible conflicts arise beforehand, you may find yourself struggling to keep your time a priority. You may be expected to put others first, or work, or school. Practice holding the space open for yourself. It can be a stretch, but your heart-spirit is worth the effort.

Yo, Jen. What does this have to do with organizing?

A valid question. : )

The way I see it, when your heart and spirit are nourished, you can do anything you set your mind to. Work becomes easier. Creativity flows. Relationships blossom. Nourishing yourself makes everything possible… including having an inspired home office.

Everyone needs time to replenish. And if you’re still not convinced, think of how much more focused and relaxed you’ll feel when you return.

If you’re inclined, I’d love your positive thoughts and prayers while I’m on retreat next week.

What would be your idea of a truly soul-nourishing retreat?

In order to drive a nail into a board, there’s the obvious downswing that pushes in the nail. Equally important is the back swing in which you prepare for the next push.

If you’re driving a car, pressing the accelerator is only half of the “getting there” equation. You also have to decelerate at the appropriate time, or your car will be in a world of hurt.

To accomplish just about anything, what’s needed is a balance between push and release.

Like most of the creative people I know, I have a frustrating tendency to focus on the push. In fact, as I write this, I’m in the process of trying to convince myself that I don’t want release at all (even though I need it). Instead, I should actually be pushing harder. Frustrating.

Push is not a resting state

When you’re in a period of intense creating, you lose the ability to contrast it with your resting state. The creative state begins to feel like normal, the baseline, when it isn’t.

The trouble is, that pushing harder and forcing work out of ourselves turns off the creative flow. Inspiration goes from a gushing river to a trickle to a dry river bed.

Pausing is vital to the creative process. Taking a break, releasing the pressure, is what fills us back up again. Once we’re replenished, you can create again without struggle.

But it’s hard.

If you live in the States, you’re probably unaware of how much drive is a part of our culture. Productivity. Proving our worth. It’s a silent message, but ever-present and ingrained.

Because of this, slowing down to replenish is counter-culture. Pausing is like swimming against a powerful stream. I often find myself feeling guilty and apologizing for taking time to nourish my spirit. Sometimes I just ignore my need to stop because it’s so hard to claim it.

Lately, I’ve been on an earnest search to discover what replenishes me. Recently, I was surprised to find that I was trying to concoct an “inspiration pill” which would allow me to quickly find my center and begin working again.

It’s laughable, isn’t it? Hurry up and slow down! In truth, pausing takes as long as it needs to and, by nature, can’t be hurried.

What I do to find inspiration

Interestingly, the word “inspire” means to breathe in. So oxygen is a good start. I also like to breathe in quiet – whether that comes from actual silence or my noise-canceling headphones. Removing sound helps me hear the important messages that come from inside.

In my heart of hearts, the thing that nourishes me most is singing old hymns from my days as a music minister. It’s been years since I sang at Mass on Sundays, but I get out my guitar and a big binder of sheet music and play until my fingertips are throbbing.

Something about the lyrics reminds me that I’m just a tiny star in the human constellation… and this is a good thing. These hymns remind me that it’s God/Universe who’s making the stars turn, not me. That it’s safe to let go and trust. I don’t have to control everything (even though my ego wants to).

After a session like this, I have happy tears and a deep feeling of release. Suddenly there’s room in my life again for all the things I love. Things come back into balance again.

It took me a long time to figure out that this is what works for me. And it will probably take the rest of my life to find ways to not resist doing it. I’m okay with that. Like everything in life, it’s a process, not a destination.

What works for you? How do you pause and replenish?

If you think back over your work history, you may laugh at the wide variety of jobs you’ve held. Think about it for a minute. When you’re creative, it almost can’t be helped!

Personally, I’ve been a Sears customer service rep, a camp counselor, a CPR instructor, a substitute teacher, a volunteer coordinator – and that’s just the beginning.

The essence of your work

The amazing thing is that as widely as your job descriptions have swung, there is a common thread between all of them: your work allows you to express your divine gift.

Your divine gift is not a skill or talent or technique. It’s not something you do. It’s an essence, a reflection of the Divine within you. Compassion, strength, love, grace are all examples.

The interesting thing about one’s divine gift is that it’s often hard to recognize. You’re immersed in it all the time, so it doesn’t seem exceptional to you – like the proverbial fish can’t see the water it’s in. It takes time to discover and begin to consciously own it.

What your divine gift is for

Each person has a purpose. There’s a passage I love from the Bible that says, “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a washtub or shoves it under the bed. No, you set it up on a lamp stand so those who enter the room can see their way.”

Your divine gift is like a light. Your purpose is to bring your light into the world. Not everyone chooses to do this, of course. It takes commitment. But if you’re on the entrepreneur’s path, your light is shining as you share your divine gift.

How does this relate to creating an organized, inspired home office?

Maybe you’ve hired an organizer in the past – but nothing stuck. Or you read an organizing book and got overwhelmed. This is really common if you think that the goal is to be organized.

It isn’t.

If you’re striving for an organized space and are continuously “failing” at it, it’s because you need a new perspective. In my work, the goal is never to be “organized.”

The goal is to create an environment that helps you share your divine gift with the world.

Organizing helps your divine gift flow into the world unobstructed. It’s a means to an end, not the end itself.

Forget tidiness. You don’t need cute, matchy boxes. You don’t even have to be pile-free. All you need is a workspace that allows your love, your gift to reach those who need it.

Things to try

1. Let yourself off the hook

If you’re obsessing, stressed or frustrated that your space feels terrible, let that be okay – for just a few minutes. Accept it exactly the way it is for the moment.

2. Ask

What divine gift are you bringing to the world? What essence is coming through you from all your varied jobs? Sit in silence for a little while and listen for an answer – something will come up from within you.

3. Then inquire

What do you need and what does your workspace need so that your divine gift can come through? What blocks can you clear so that you can really reach the people who need you gift?

My guess is that if you take a time with these questions and write down your responses, you’ll get ideas that will really help your business grow. You may find that you don’t need cute little boxes, but something more real, more holy, and more you.

I’d love to know how it goes.

(For a tender, fabulous book that lists Divine qualities, see The Sufi Book of Life by Neil Douglas Klotz.)

It was fabulous.

I realized over the week that one of the most important sources of entrepreneurial momentum is knowing what your business stands for and why it exists.

Hitting home

If you’ve subscribed to my newsletter for a while, you know that I care deeply about my clients and the success of their business.

Yet, as I’ve encouraged people to get their offices ship-shape, something kept happening. They’d tell me about their problem areas and then we’d write an action plan. But over time, some clients would lose enthusiasm for clearing out the clutter or setting up new systems. Sometimes they saw this work as “time away” from the business and their clients. They’d lose steam.

Not surprisingly, that wasn’t my intention.

A new approach

At Mark’s retreat, I discovered the missing ingredient that helps people get motivated and stay engaged in the process of creating an effective, inspiring home office.

Are you dying to find out that secret ingredient?

It’s passion.

Beginning with the end in mind

I believe that you have a gift. When your workspace isn’t working, it blocks the flow of your gift to the world. It can actually prevent your unique offerings from getting to the people who need them most.

If you’ve been focusing on trying to “fix” your office’s problems (piles or clutter or whatever), it’s okay to stop.

(That means don’t get organized.)

You don’t have to get organized just for the sake of organizing. Don’t force yourself to live up to an unrealistic, uninspiring standard. That’s a dead end that will just deplete you and your business.

Instead…

A favorite author of mine, Robert Fritz, says that you can’t help but create the results you want if you begin with the end in mind.

By starting with a big, juicy vision of how your work can change the world, it will allow you to see with great clarity the very things your office needs to support your work.

Then, you can take it down to the practical level of removing clutter or setting up filing… but the difference is that you’re making changes that align with your vision.

That’s a whole different ball game from just “getting organized”, don’t you think?

Why it matters

It all comes down to this: the world needs your gifts. It needs them more than you can know.

In order to bring your gifts to those who need them, your business needs support – and your office is a fabulous place to start.

Things to try

1. Notice if you guilt/beat yourself up about your clutter/piles/office

If you do, try stopping. Really. I’m extending to you gentle permission to accept your workspace exactly as it is. Take a deep breath. It’s okay. It’s perfect.

See your space for what it is: precious, holy ground that can deeply nurture your business.

2. Connect with your passion

Do you remember the day you got the idea to start your business? Reflect for a moment on what kind of impact you want your business to have in the world?

3. Make tracks

As you keep this global impact in your heart, ask yourself if there’s something you can do in your workspace that would help spread your message to the world more effectively. Is it more regular connections with your contacts? A clearer billing system? An easier way to find the information you need?

What does your business vision need to provide it with complete support? There are no “right” answers, just trust whatever comes up – and then make a note of it.

Connecting your vision with this practical step will make it easier to complete and more fulfilling when it’s done.