With the holidays approaching and 2014 just a few months away, I’ve been looking back at the past year and what a whirlwind it was. I get emotional just thinking about what a roller coaster it has been.

Adventures I’ll never forget.
Moments I’ll never forget.
People I’ll never forget.
Career decisions.
(What felt like) career disasters.
The summer in Montauk.
My best friend getting married.
Discovering what I’m truly passionate about.
Stepping into my identity.
…the list goes on.

If I’m being completely honest, lately a lot of those things (the good and the bad) have been catching up to me. I have that all over the place feeling, even when I’m doing nothing at all. I find myself continually taking on new things – and not closing doors behind me – with the idea that “well as soon as THIS happens” or “as soon as THIS is over” things will go back to normal.

But I’m realizing life doesn’t work that way. Not everything always works itself out…sometimes you need to step in and claim back the life that is rightfully yours.

One of my biggest problems is that I spend so much time and energy on what I think are the “big things” that I fail to cultivate the seemingly “simple things” – the basics - as much as I should. The irony is that as soon as I stop tending to the basics, all of the other things seem even more difficult to manage.

So I’m going back to basics.

One of the first things to go when my mind is all over the place is my daily time spent with God, and that’s the biggest mistake I could make. When I start my day with God, He’s present throughout every thought, decision, and emotion. But when I start my day going right into work (as I have been), I find myself in a blur of messy negative thoughts, and believing things that aren’t even the truth. And that…that has GOT to change.

The other basic thing I need to get back to is just taking better care of myself – my mind, body, and soul. I need to be more cognizant of my limits…and stop pushing myself past them. Living in the most fast-paced city in the world, that’s not exactly an easy thing to do. But I need to remember that the best way to be an effective worker, friend, and leader is to first make sure I’m taking care of myself.

My course of action is pretty simple – I’m going to remember to focus on those two things more, as well as embrace my “be me” plan. I’m excited to get back to basics…whose with me?

**********

How do you combat feeling “all over the place”?
What does going back to basics look like for you?