This Labor Day, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
As we move through this Labor Day weekend, I’ve been thinking about something many of us probably need to hear right now:
Don’t sweat the small stuff.
I had remembered that phrase as something associated with Dr. Wayne Dyer, but it was actually psychologist Richard Carlson who made it famous with his 1997 bestseller, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff…and It’s All Small Stuff.
And nearly 30 years later, I think we may need his advice more than ever.
Because, goodness knows, some of what we are dealing with these days is not small stuff.
There are people worried about their jobs, their health, their families, their finances and the future. Many of us are deeply concerned about what is happening in our country and our world. Some are caring for aging parents or struggling with their own aging bodies. Others are grieving losses that nobody else can see.
Those things matter.
But perhaps that is exactly why we cannot afford to spend our precious emotional energy on everything else.
The rude driver.
The slow checkout line.
The person who didn’t answer the text.
The dinner that didn’t turn out quite right.
The irritating comment on Facebook.
The mistake we made yesterday that nobody else is even thinking about today.
Carlson offered wonderfully simple reminders: “Choose your battles wisely.” “Make peace with imperfection.” And one of my favorites: “Life isn’t an emergency.”
Maybe that should be our little Labor Day assignment.
Before allowing something to ruin an hour—or a day—ask yourself:
Will this matter a year from now?
If the answer is no, perhaps we can practice putting it down.
Not because everything is wonderful. Not because there aren’t serious things requiring our attention, our voices and sometimes our action.
But because we need to save ourselves for the things that really matter.
So this Labor Day, rest if you can. Laugh when the opportunity presents itself. Eat something delicious. Call somebody you love. Sit outside for a while. Turn off the news for an afternoon. Give yourself permission not to solve everything today.
We are all doing the best we can, sometimes under circumstances that are extraordinarily difficult.
And maybe taking care of ourselves begins with remembering that we don’t have to carry every irritation, every disappointment and every imperfection along with us.
Some things deserve our attention.
And some things deserve to be put down.
Happy Labor Day, my friends. Take good care of yourselves—and, whenever you can, don’t sweat the small stuff.
Thank you, as always, for reading Julie’s Journal, for sharing it with others, and for subscribing. It means more to me than you know.
Julie Bolejack, MBA
The Mindful Activist
Subscribe at julies-journal.ghost.io
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