It seems like I sat down just yesterday to write an article — I had a great idea and everything — then I looked up and more than a month had gone by. What the heck happened, I asked myself? Short answer: LIFE.

“Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.”
~ John Lennon

Has that ever happened to you? You’re all set to embark on something new, or even something you routinely take care of, and something unexpected happens that needs your attention. Seems reasonable — you look away for a second to take care of it and then *poof* — it seems like years later and you wonder where the time went. If this sounds familiar, try these suggestions for getting yourself back on track.

Practice self-compassion
You know the love, understanding and forgiveness you give to your best friend when he or she has a lapse? Give that to yourself! It’s not a cop out, it’s the compassionate thing to do — and self-compassion leads to greater overall life satisfaction, as well as increased optimism and overall improved demeanor.

Acknowledge what is
It can be easy to push against whatever has intruded on you, especially if it’s a negative intrusion. How well does that really work, though? If you’re in a fast moving stream and you keep trying to swim against the current, mostly what you’ll get is exhausted. Better to acknowledge you’re in the water and do your best to navigate through it, doing what you can to avoid hitting the banks and tree branches and making things worse.

Chunk it down
When you’re ready to get back on track you might feel overwhelmed, wondering where to even start. Chunking things down into little bits makes them easier to approach: if you want to organize your desk, define what organized means — pencils in the cup, papers filed in the cabinet, etc. Specifically defining what you want to do, and making each step tiny, makes it easier to begin and to know when you’re making progress.

Next time LIFE seems to get the better of you, take a few moments to reflect on taking care of yourself, breathe into where you’re at, and take tiny steps -– you’ll actually feel better and get some things done, too!