Time Travel
Remember when we talked about Be Where Your Feet Are? To quickly recap, ‘be where your feet are’ reminds us that it’s best to focus on the present moment, not the past or future. Like I said before, there’s a time and a place for learning from the past and preparing for the future, but the middle of performing is not that place.
I do recognize that sometimes that’s easier said than done, but it is not impossible. Here is one tool you can use when you’re in the moment, feeling anxious, and want to reset:
Deep Breaths
Can you take the next step? The literal next step?
Deep Breaths
Direct your focus into completing that immediate next step.
Deep Breaths
Repeat that process until the task that caused you to overthink is complete.
Here’s an example of when I had to follow that exact process. A few years ago, my husband and I summited Mt. Shasta, a 14,179 foot peak at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. It was our first attempt at a 14er and our first time doing an alpine climb. We only gave ourselves a few weeks to prepare and train, and during that time, my mind was racing with thoughts about my abilities to accomplish the task.
Alpine mountain climbing basically means climbing above the tree line, and in this case, in snow and ice. To summit Mt. Shasta, we had to climb up near vertical mountain sides covered in snow, ice, rock, and skré (loose rock). My thoughts often wandered to picturing myself slipping, falling, and/or sliding off the side of the mountain; would I be able to . Not an ideal line of thinking!
I spent a great deal of time preparing myself mentally and physically for the task at hand - preparing better thoughts, practicing my breathwork, going on training hikes - all to make sure I was ready to attempt the summit. We booked a guided trip, so we had professionals with us teaching us the necessary skills (using crampons and an ice ax, etc). One of the most important things they told us was that while climbing, it was crucial that we focused on our next foot placement. Not how far we had gone, not how far we had left to go - the literal next spot we put our foot down in the snow.
This didn’t make full sense until we were up on the mountain in the middle of our ascent. It was steep. It was challenging. It was repetitive. It was exhausting. I learned early on that if my focus shifted from my next foot placement - like looking up or down for example, or thinking about how tired I was - I would wobble a bit, feel unsteady, and my negative worrisome racing thoughts would snowball. But when I stayed focused on the literal next step, I was fine. And by taking one literal step at a time, I was able to successfully summit Mt. Shasta - an accomplishment I will never forget.
Look, overthinking happens. It can sometimes be a part of life. It’s okay when this happens, unless we let it consume us. My dad used to say, ‘How would you eat an extra large pizza all by yourself? One bite at a time.’ Whatever task lies in front of you, imagine conquering it one step at a time, one bite at a time and repeat as necessary. Connect with your breathing as a way to center yourself and regain focus back to the present. Feel the air enter and exit your lungs - inhale calming focus, exhale overthinking - identify the literal next step to take, and take it.
You got this.
And we’ve got you. Reach out and let’s chat!
