February 20, 2012 

Just Be 

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of goals. I’ve written about making goals and achieving goals and planning, planning, planning on my blog. But there is also something to be said about throwing your plans to the wind and just living. Lately I’ve been feeling over-scheduled and overstressed. It seems like everything I’ve been doing is in order to reach some overarching goal. I have been constantly trying to move forward on something and it’s become exhausting. I realize I have forgotten how it feels to just be. To just wake up and do nothing “productive.” To just laze about in a sunbeam and casually flip through magazines. To wander aimlessly through shops or take naps in the middle of the afternoon.

Sometimes you just need white space.

If you’re anything like me, you may also have a tough time making time for the nothingness in life. You might feel positively guilty when you take the time to watch trashy TV instead of working on your masterpiece. You may be telling yourself that you’ll have all the white space you need once you launch your business or land your dream job. 

If you’re anything like me, you probably feel anxious about taking the time out to relax, because there’s so much work to be done, right? And right now, you need to keep charging full speed ahead to your goals.

Well, that’s a crock of shit. 

You need that white space in order to be productive. You need the time to relax and rejuvenate if you want to be the absolute rock star that you are. If you constantly have your blinders on while working diligently according to your plan, you’re apt to miss out on all the beauty the world has to offer. Or worse, you’ll end up burnt out, overwhelmed and frustrated as all get out.

Creating a White Space habit may seem daunting at first but you can boil it down to 3 simple steps:

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1. Envision your Ideal Day – Find a quiet space and ruminate on your absolute perfect day from start to finish. Think about the itty bitty, nitty gritty details. The activities that you fill your ideal day with are your White Space elements. How can you work to schedule these elements into your current schedule?
2. Fight the Resistance – You’re going to feel resistance to this whole idea. That means it’s working! What excuses come to mind when you begin to think about time out for yourself? These are your triggers. The next time any of these excuses pop up, that means it is time for you to take some time out for yourself – even if it is only 15 minutes.
3. Schedule your White Space – Decide how much of it you want each day and slot it into your calendar. Once the White Space is slotted into your schedule, hold onto that space with your dear life. Be vigilant about your White Space. Do not let anything or anyone - not even yourself - shift your White Space.

Take time out for yourself. Take the time to wander. Explore. Be aimless. Be spontaneous.

Just be. 

Don’t worry about not having enough time. You have enough time. Enjoy it.

This article was part of our series "30 Days of Made: Love Yourself". Each day we released updates of videos, poetry, images, and original content, all based on the theme of loving yourself. Click the link to read more!