Have you ever heard an athlete say that they were “in the groove”?  That their mind was so clear that everything seemed to “flow”?   Whether an athlete, artist, or banker, we can all experience that “flow.   And much like a running water tap, when the pipes become clogged with obstructions our flow is disrupted and the flow dwindles to a trickle.  Where do the obstructions come from?   We put them there.  I believe most of our obstructions come from three major areas; stress, anger, and fear.  To ensure success and flow in our personal and professional lives, we need to ask ourselves some hard questions because it is only us who can bore through our system to remove any obstructions holding us back. 

Stress and tension - Ask yourself what issues or people in your life are a source of stress for you?  I’m deliberately using the word “source” as opposed to “cause” because we need to understand that it is us who determines the meaning we assign to a situations or event.   When we say we are stressed “because” of this person or situation we remove a certain amount of ownership from how we are feeling.   Who or what is a source of stress in your life today and what are three things that you can do to alleviate the stress and tension you’re currently feeling?

Anger (and its cousins un-forgiveness, resentment, jealousy, and depression when turned inward) - Anger is another emotion that blocks our pipes and interrupts our flow.  Where is your anger directed and how much energy and time is it taking away from your life?   Does the focus of your anger even know (or care) that this is causing you so much disruption in your life.   Why is it important to hold onto this anger and what would happen if you simply stopped caring about the situation or person? 

Fear – Fear of the unknown and self doubt will also trip us up and take away the flow from our lives.  What are the fears holding you back in your current situation?  Often the antidote for this obstruction is simply facing your fear head on.  There is nothing external that will take away this fear.   It will not change over time nor will you receive new information that will assist in taking away your fear.   The only way to alleviate this is to decide when you will face your fear and drive through it.

When we have honestly looked at our lives and asked these straightforward questions, flow returns to us.   Cleaning out the pipes and the obstructions with it, enables us to get our flow and become a more effective person with greater focus.  So take the time to ensure you are in a position to get flow back into your life.  Ask the questions that need to be asked.  Remove the debris that needs to be removed.