We’ve all been there. You’re doing your work and either the quantity of the load or the intensity of the project become laughably overwhelming.
For a moment, it feels doable. Like we can get it done if we just had a little more time and resources. That’s because we were under the illusion of control.
Then the workload or intensity surpasses our capacities and we realize for the first time: we don’t have control. It has us.
Imagine you’re standing on the shores of a distant beach and a large wave is approaching. At first, it seems doable to outrun or move away from the wave once it’s necessary to do so. However, once the wave reaches a certain size and proximity, the gig is up. It’s too late to scramble. Too late to move. No matter how much effort you put in there’s no conquering this thing. Only survival.
So really there’s two options: one is that you continue to try and control a tsunami wave or at best swim for your life. This might mean a vain attempt at constructing a barrier of sorts to break the crushing power. But we all know that’s futile and a terrible decision. The second option is to embrace the insanity of the moment and let the odd sense of peace come over your mind as you realize control is gone. Now it’s just surviving. But the experience of our survival is the focus now. Specifically, it’s our demeanor and attitude in the midst of survival.
We have a choice. It might not play out like we thought or hoped but we do have a choice. Sometimes it means letting the peace rise up in size in relation to the approaching wave.
