During my last coaching session with Sue, somehow we journeyed to the topic of sleep and how my best ideas come to me in the middle of the night.*
My sleep conversation with Sue went something like this:
Sue: What do you do when those ideas come to you in your sleep?
Me: I try to push them out of my mind, so I can go back to sleep. Otherwise, I am tired the next day.
Sue: Is that working for you?
Me: No. I spend hours thinking of those ideas and wishing them away.
Sue (slightly humored): I am imagining you and those ideas - like a giant ball of ideas that you are using all your force to push away.
Me: Yep, that's me. I want those ideas to leave. me. alone.
Sue: What if you did the opposite and welcomed them?
Me: What? (I wasn't quite sure I heard her correctly)
Sue: What if you welcomed those ideas instead of pushing them away?
Me: I've never considered welcoming them.
So, for the past week, I've been doing just that. When the ideas come to me in the middle of the night instead of wishing them away, I say, "Hello Ideas, thanks for joining me." Then, I cuddle those ideas like the drawing above. And back to sleep I go. The only difference is, my drawing really should have about 2-10 balls as I am often times cuddling more than one set of ideas.
The good news: I am getting more sleep and my ideas now have a soft, welcoming place to land.
Do your ideas interrupt your sleep? If yes, how do you handle them?
Best,
Jen
* After reading Jonah Lehrer's Imagine, I now understand why my best ideas come to me in my sleep. I will blog on that topic another day.
PS - Confused about me & life coaching? If yes, read here. Or if you missed the passing of perfect, read about its funeral.
