Do you have a lot going on in your head right now?

I do.

We have two teenagers, each doing big exams this year.

Work is busy in a brilliant way.

I’ve said yes to a few things that feel good scary.

Some things are closing and others are beginning.

My brain is busy busy whirring away with ideas...

…and I also feel a strong desire to rest.

What to do?

In a yoga class recently, I realised that I couldn’t switch my quads on - “lift at the kneecaps” was something my brain simply couldn’t connect with my body to create.

In some ways it wasn’t a surprise. I’ve been intentionally focusing on other parts for the last few months - my core, my balance, my strength in different places.

All brilliant and needed at the time, and now I need to pay a little more attention to the parts I have forgotten about.

This can be true in our life as well as with our body. At certain points we can be focused on a particular part of it - our work, our health, our past, our future.

I love a good declutter.

I once explored making it a business because I love it so much.

I’m good with clothes, books, possessions, thoughts, my to-do list... and yet with words, that I or someone else have written, it’s harder.

So, that’s what I tackled most recently.

When our dog finds the right kind of stick in the park he feels epic.

It doesn’t always happen.

He explores lots of options and decides yes or no in the moment - which to sniff, which to test out, which to drop and which to keep.

I’ve done more yoga this year than ever before, and I love both the movement and the insights I get on the mat.

So often something a yoga teacher says will strike a chord.

My most recent a-ha moment was about conscious flexibility - actively choosing when to stretch and when not to.

It linked so clearly for me into our personal boundaries.

Lots of us can stretch, accommodate, adjust.

We can hang out in our flexibility. It can become part of who we are.

We can extend ourselves but hurt ourselves in the process.

We can push ourselves beyond our limits trying to keep up with others.

Sometimes its good to stretch - we don’t want to turn into statues.

Sometimes it’s not - we don’t want to snap.

In a recent coaching session with the brilliant Sue Belton, I realised that my to do list had lost its way.

It was no longer a summary of the key actions to take to move forward.

It had turned into a long list of things I could do, a faffing-around-the-edges list.

It wasn’t useful any more.

It used to be. But I’ve spent the last 18 months working through it, and also added a lot of useful structures and systems in place (hello scheduling!).

I still have things I want to focus my attention on, but so much more of what I do has a consistent rhythm.

I’m keeping things moving rather than starting from scratch.

It feels VERY weird. And quite uncomfortable too.

How do you feel about changing your mind?

About unravelling a decision.

About saying no to something that felt like a wholehearted yes when you started? Or vice versa?

It can be hard to reverse a decision that once felt good.

And yet it’s really important to pay attention to where you are now, rather than where you were when you started.

Because circumstances can change. And so can you.

There’s a magical moment when we go from knowing something rationally to really *knowing* it.

When the mists clear and the penny drops.

When we know exactly what’s right and what to do next.

It’s especially magical when we’ve been sitting with something for a while. A big decision. A life choice. A crossroads. When something that has been stuck unlocks.

So how do you get to that point?

“Should I make this less specific?”

I’ve had a few people ask me this question in coaching sessions recently.

They feel they ‘should’ be bringing bigger ‘meta’ issues.

They worry that by being specific they are focusing in on too small a thing - or narrowing their options too much.

They think they should focus on the bigger picture rather than one piece of the puzzle.

When this happens I tell them that it’s generally really useful to be specific.

One of my new favourite ways to spend Sunday morning is in a warm yoga class at my local studio.

It’s the perfect balance of relaxing and intense (even though I’m always lulled into a false sense of security by the gentleness of the first 15 minutes!).

And this week it came with the added bonus of a huge a-ha moment.

As we settled into our mats the yoga teacher (the brilliant Kayleigh) set up the session.

She reminded us that it was our practice. At any time we could take a break or make a change.

I’ve heard this before and know it makes sense. I’m even getting better at actually doing it :-)

But her next sentence really landed it for me:

“Just because I tell you to do something, doesn’t mean you have to”.

Game changer.