If you are a regular reader of my column at times you will know that listening to my inner voice plays a big part of my journey. Over the last couple of weeks, I found it had started to shout at me as opposed to ‘talking quietly’, you may ask how I know the difference.

Well…..

Over the last year due to circumstances, I started to chase around more and unknowingly my physical body started to get tired, I had no energy and the more I tried to do the less I got done. All in all, I almost found myself coming back as I was going forward, basically like a dog chasing its tail I was going round in circles. As you will know from my last column in the end I had no choice but to stop!

Through my work, I often share with others the need to just be still, although there are times when I am so busy helping others, I forget that I too just need to let go and just be. I guess even though I trained as a coach it did not make me a ‘super human’ but what it did do is assist me to recognise the signs and to understand that when that something inside says ‘Stop’ then that is indeed what is meant to happen; If however I don’t ‘Stop’ as soon as I should I get the message loud and clear as it begins to affect my physical self..

Now,at the point of ‘I have exhausted all my energy’ I tend to take a few days off with my family or spend time with friends I turn off my mobile and emails to solely concentrate on just being still and being with those I hold close. I have found at these times I often come up with some of best ideas, so I always have a notebook and pen handy!

The main thing that occurs when I slow down, sit quietly and ‘just be’ is that the inner voice quietens down and then equally so do I in the understanding again that the more we keep moving the less we get done and the higher the stress levels.

In today’s world life is busy not just physically, we are surrounded by noise, our communication systems are constantly on, social media on a lot of phones is constantly notifying you to check your phone, after all you may have missed something and television can if we choose be on 24 / 7, who remembers the days it shut off at midnight? It wasn’t that long ago!

If you are of a certain age you will be able to look back to see how access to phones was in that phone box at the end of the road, TV did indeed shut off at midnight, books were our source of knowledge and education and all in all we had a chance to enjoy the peace of just being. Wasn’t it therefore a calmer way of life?

While a lot of modern advances are useful I urge you to sometimes step back, take a breath, sit still and listen to what your inner voice is telling you, it may seem like you don’t have the time to do so but trust me it is a beneficial thing to do because as the saying goes, listen to your inner voice and your body when it is whispering as you won’t want to hear it when it screams!