Engaged

You may have seen an article that made its way through the interwebs last year about Languishing. It described so well what many of us have been feeling. It’s not a full on depression, but it is also a lack of interest in life. I would say that there have been many points in my life where i have languished but the pandemic has definitely accelerated the problem. The antidote to languishing is ‘flow’. Flow is basically when you become lost in the doing of something and you lose all sense of time. There’s a whole book on it called Flow: The Psychology of Optimization if you are interested in reading more. If you want a great summary of Adam Grant’s antidote here you go.

I get lost in ‘flow’ when I read a really good book, when I crochet, weave or sew, when I am learning something new like a language or playing guitar (Although some people find learning something new to knock them out of flow, but learning new things is kind of written into my DNA.), and when I’m baking. Even writing this blog post gets me in ‘flow’. Basically anything that keeps my hands or brain lost in the moment. There’s a reason why doing puzzles swept the nation during the pandemic. It was a way to be in flow and sometimes be in community. I work with a coach who when she heard I was struggling said, “Have you been crafting?”. Um, no. No I had not and it was having a real impact on how I was feeling. So, I have to do something daily that engages me and usually that is some crocheting or weaving. Things that are small and don’t require a lot of space, unlike sewing. Sigh.

What if you don’t know what lights you up or keeps you engaged. Well, here’s a list to get you started. I’ve broken it up in four different groups based on how you are feeling. If you want to be active, then check out ‘Move’, but if you need something quiet to do, or your energy is low, pick something from ‘Think’ or ‘Create’. Another way to get engaged and connected is being in community, so there is a ‘Social’ section just for that. It may take trying out things before you find what helps you get lost in flow. In fact I took pottery classes for over a year, which I loved, but it made me realize that my true love was textiles. It helped me return to sewing and crafting.

Do you have anything you would add to the list? Please drop me a comment. Let me know if you find something that intrigues you and if you need help finding an activity or hobby, then sign up for a free call and we can talk through some options.

Engaging Activities- The antidote to languishing

Move-

High activity Sports:

Rugby

Soccer

Football

Dodgeball

Kickball

Running

Biking

Moving and Grooving

Table tennis

Badminton

Gymnastics

Ice skating

Yoga

Dancing

Bowling

Outdoor

Hiking

Foraging

Gardening

Biking

Rock Climbing

Glamping

Birding

Think

Games

Cosplay

Poker

Board games

Chess

Collecting

Plants

Antiques

Books

Art

Chairs (I have a chair problem!)

Quiet activities

Reading

Writing

Meditating

Photography

Puzzles

Blogging

Learn a language

Book Club

Geneaology

Sudoku

Create

Arts and Crafts

Painting

Watercolor

Drawing

Weaving

Crochet

Knitting

Scrapbooking

Pottery

Jewelry making

Sewing

Woodworking

Social

Circle back to some of those sports

Food and drink

Cooking and baking and sharing your knowledge (mmm)

Cocktails

Brewing

Wine, Beer or Cheese club

Other

Storytelling

Improv

Stitch and Bitch